A Study of Decadal December Temperature Variability in Pakistan

Abstract

The spatial distribution of December temperature in Pakistan has been assessed by statistical method based on mean monthly data from 51 ground stations. The analysis is performed at decadal scale over the period of 1950-2000. December is one of the representative months of winter season in Pakistan, the country with subtropical location and complex rugged terrains, plateaus and plains. The results support a slight rising temperature trend in December. However, this change in temperature varies from region to region as well as from decade to decade and reflects a complicated spatial-temporal structure of temperature anomalies. The assessment shows that the temperature anomalies in different national territories at local scale do not follow the assumption that winter months are warming in northern hemisphere. Both the isothermal shift and temperature anomalies confirm that the mountainous areas of Pakistan face more temperature variability than plains.