The effects of anomalous snow cover of the Tibetan Plateau on the surface heating

On the basis of snow data and AWS (Automatic Weather Station) data obtained from the Tibetan Plateau in recent years (1993 to 1999), the features of sensible heat, latent heat and net long-wave radiations are estimated, and their variations in more-snow year (1997/ 1998) and less-snow year (1996/ 1997) are analyzed comparatively. The relationships between snow cover of the Tibetan Plateau and plateau’s surface heating to the atmospheric heating are also discussed. The difference between more-snow and less-snow year in spring is remarkably larger than that in winter. Therefore, the effect of anomalous snow cover of the Tibetan Plateau in winter on the plateau heating appears more clearly in the following spring of anomalous snow cover.