Jiyang Zhang

Mr. Jiyang Zhang


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

7Years (2020-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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28 April 2020 in Geosciences
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
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JZJiyang Zhang
Jiyang Zhang
HZHaochi Zheng
Haochi Zheng
XZXiaodong Zhang
Xiaodong Zhang
JVJeffrey VanLooy
Jeffrey VanLooy
Long-term snowfall change offers insight for understanding climate change, managing water resources, and assessing climate model performance, especially at regional scales where topography plays an important role in shaping regional climate and water availability. In this study, we examined the changes of annual snowfall using observations from 1961 to 2017 in central North America, a region with high contrast in topographic complexities. There is a general, yet distinct difference in the snowfall trends demarcated approximately along the 105° W meridian. To its east, which is dominated by plains, snowfall had increased overall, except in a limited area south of 42° N, where snowfall decreased slightly. To the west of 105° W, which is dominated by the Rocky Mountains, there was a wide spread of decreasing trend, with only two pockets of area at an elevation of >2000 m exhibiting increasing snowfall trends. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that, in addition to the average annual snowfall, snowfall trends significantly correlated with elevation in the mountain region and with average snow season temperature in the plains region, suggesting different mechanisms potentially shaping snowfall trends in the two regions.