Recently, it is reported from the National Climate Centre (NCC) that plum rain in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River in China began on June 17, 3 days later than usual (June 14). The Jianghuai Region entered the plum rain season on June 19, 4 days earlier than the usual (June 23).

Plum rain is a unique weather and climate phenomenon in East Asia and springs from the periodic activities of the East Asian summer monsoon.

Plum rain in China is mainly distributed in the Jianghuai River Basin, namely, from Yichang in Hubei in the west to the coast of East China, covering Shanghai, Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan and other provinces (municipalities).

The annual average plum rainfall in the Jianghuai River Basin surpasses 300 mm, accounting for 30% to 40% of the total annual precipitation.

There are differences in the temporal and spatial distribution of plum rain in China, and the regional characteristics are obvious.

Meteorological data show that in the past 6 decades, the number of no-rain days, precipitation intensity, frequency and intensity of extreme precipitation events in the rainy season of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River have displayed an increasing trend, and the increasing trend of precipitation intensity is the most pronounced.

Editor: LIU Shuqiao