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Climate Change 2016
October 27-29, 2016
Volume 7, Issue 9(Suppl)
J Earth Sci Clim Change
ISSN: 2157-7617 JESCC, an open access journal
conferenceseries
.com
October 24-26, 2016 Valencia, Spain
World Conference on
Climate Change
Faster increase in apparent temperature under climate warming
Yongqin David Chen
The Chinese University of Hong Kong, China
A
pparent temperature, an indicator of temperature human perceives, is mainly determined by air temperature, humidity
and wind speed. Global warming indicated by increasing air temperature alters climatic and hydrologic circulations, and
hence changes humidity and wind speed, which jointly influence apparent temperature. Here we study the global changes
in apparent temperature and compare these changes with air temperature to investigate how human feels about continuous
global warming. Results show that under climate warming, apparent temperature increases faster than air temperature. This
phenomenon is especially remarkable in the tropics and subtropics and under high emission scenario. During 1981-2000,
apparent temperature in the tropics is 0-4
o
C higher than air temperature, and then increases to 3-6
o
C higher during 2081-
2100 under Representative Concentration Pathway 8.5. The apparent temperature in the tropics is projected to reach >35
o
C,
implying severe health impacts. Continental average of apparent temperature is 1.5
o
C lower than air temperature in 2000, and
turns to 0.25
o
C higher by the end of 21
st
century. The faster increment in apparent temperature is a combined effect of stronger
heat stress and weaker cooling effect caused by increasing air temperature with negligible changes in relative humidity and
wind speed.
Biography
Yongqin David Chen is a Professor for the Department of Geography and Resource Management at The Chinese University of Hong Kong. His research and teaching
areas include hydrology and water resources management, meteorology and climatology, environmental assessment and modeling, and regional development. In
recent years his research activities have been focused on hydrologic impacts of global climate change and regional land-use alteration, low-flow hydrology in the
Pearl River basin, hydrologic changes in the Pearl River Delta, and urban water management in Hong Kong and strategic environmental assessment in China.
ydavidchen@cuhk.edu.hkYongqin David Chen, J Earth Sci Clim Change 2016, 7:9(Suppl)
http://dx.doi.org/10.4172/2157-7617.C1.027