This paper investigated the spatial and temporal variations of the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) from 1979 to 2018. The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts Re-Analysis-Interim (ERA-Interim) reanalysis data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) is selected for UTCI calculation in the region and analyzed by a linear trend and correlation analysis. The results showed that (1) the UTCI of CPEC is decreased with the increase of latitude and altitude. There is obvious spatial heterogeneity in the seasonal scale and the spatial distribution of different thermal stress categories. (2) UTCI generally exhibited a positive trend of 0.33 °C/10a over the past 40 years, and the seasonal variation characteristics of UTCI show an upward trend in all four seasons, of which spring is the fastest. On the space scale, the growth trend has significant spatial variations. (3) Temperature has a positive correlation with UTCI. The influence of temperature on UTCI is greater than that of wind speed. The results of this study will be helpful for regional planning and also contribute to comprehending the characteristics of the thermal environment in CPEC.

Tourism plays an important role in Kashgar’s socio-economic development. Climate change has a profound impact on the development of tourism. However, basic research on climate change and its impact on tourism remains insufficient in Kashgar. Using the atmospheric reanalysis data ERA5 and the universal thermal climate index (UTCI) model, climate change and climate comfort were evaluated from 1979 to 2018. The annual mean UTCI was −2.3 °C, i.e., at the coolish level, with moderate cold stress, illustrating that Kashgar’s tourism climate was weak. The obvious increase in the annual mean air temperature led to an obviously increased UTCI and a lengthened comfortable period, which provides possibilities to exploit an attractive climate and the potential for tourism. The poor climate conditions imply that the development of Kashgar’s tourism should depend more on the diversification and uniqueness of tourism products and the quality of tourism services. Therefore, the development of increased tourism products and the expansion of tourism regions, in the context of improving climate conditions, were focused on. We expect this case study to provide a reference for consumer travel decision-making and a necessary scientific basis for the planning and implementation of a tourism-based national promotional strategy in western China.

Due to the impact of COVID-19, people’s demand for non-contact tourism is increasing. The development of Internet technologies such as the Internet of Things, virtual reality (VR), and augmented reality (AR) can meet this demand. Internet technology makes non-contact tourism grow. However, these new technologies are emerging only within application cases, which cannot provide comprehensive methodological guidance for tourism suppliers. Despite the booming development of winter tourism in China, there are still many problems, especially affecting the tourist experience.rarchy process (AHP) and activity, setting, experience and benefit (ASEB) grid analysis were used to analyze the activities, settings, experiences and benefits of the scenic spot from the tourist perspective taking the Dagu Glacier Scenic Spot (DGSS) as an example. The research aims to increase the attraction of the scenic zone, and promote the coordinated and sustainable development of business in West China under the goal of improving tourists’ experiences. The results show that: subgoals of experience (E) and benefit (B) are the main directions of the development of ice and snow tourism in the DGSS. Furthermore, the threat of benefits (TB), the threat of setting (TS), the threat of experience (TE), the opportunities of benefits (OB), the opportunities of setting (OS), and the opportunities of experience (OE) are the main concerns.

Pleasant climates can be divided into two types: the comfortable summer climate and the comfortable winter climate, but existing studies rarely pay attention to the distribution characteristics and differences between the two types of climate. This study investigates the spatial distribution of comfortable summer and winter climates in the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and their differences based on the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts Re-Analysis-Interim (ERA-interim) reanalysis data from 1979 to 2018. The Universal Thermal Climate Index was used to analyze climatic suitability. The findings are as follows. First, the comfortable summer climate regions of the CPEC were mainly distributed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan and some regions of Xinjiang in China and also sporadically distributed in high altitude mountains, such as the western plateau area. The comfortable winter climate regions were mainly distributed in vast areas except for Karakoram and nearby areas. Second, there are a few regions with dual attributes of comfortable summer and winter climates in CPEC. Third, according to the calculation and comparison of the regional area of different climate comfort levels in summer and winter, it is found that the comfortable summer climate is scarcer in CPEC and is a monopoly resource. The comfortable winter climate is widely distributed, belonging to the ubiquitous resources. These findings can be helpful for the tourism development of local climate resources.

The melting of the polar ice caps is considered to be an essential factor for global sea-level rise and has received significant attention. Quantitative research on ice cap mass changes is critical in global climate change. In this study, GRACE JPL RL06 data under the Mascon scheme based on the dynamic method were used. Greenland, which is highly sensitive to climate change, was selected as the study area. Greenland was divided into six sub-research regions, according to its watersheds. The spatial–temporal mass changes were compared to corresponding temperature and precipitation statistics to analyze the relationship between changes in ice sheet mass and climate change. The results show that: (i) From February 2002 to September 2019, the rate of change in the Greenland Ice Sheet mass was about −263 ± 13 Gt yr⁻¹ and the areas with the most substantial ice sheet loss and climate changes were concentrated in the western and southern parts of Greenland. (ii) The mass balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet during the study period was at a loss, and this was closely related to increasing trends in temperature and precipitation. (iii) In the coastal areas of western and southern Greenland, the rate of mass change has accelerated significantly, mainly because of climate change.