Three ring-width chronologies were developed from Qilian Juniper （Sabina przewalskii Kom.） at the upper treeline along a west-east gradient in the Anyemaqen Mountains. Most chronological statistics, except for mean sensitivity （MS）, decreased from west to east. The first principal component （PC1） Ioadings indicated that stands in a similar climate condition were most important to the variability of radial growth. PC2 Ioadings decreased from west to east, suggesting the difference of tree-growth between eastern and western Anyemaqen Mountains. Correlations between standard chronologies and climatic factors revealed different climatic influences on radial growth along a west-east gradient in the study area. Temperature of warm season （July-August） was important to the radial growth at the upper treeline in the whole study area. Precipitation of current May was an important limiting factor of tree growth only in the western （drier） upper treeline, whereas precipitation of current September limited tree growth in the eastern （wetter） upper treeline. Response function analysis results showed that there were regional differences between tree growth and climatic factors in various sampling sites of the whole study area. Temperature and precipitation were the important factors influencing tree growth in western （drier） upper treeline. However, tree growth was greatly limited by temperature at the upper treeline in the middle area, and was more limited by precipitation than temperature in the eastern （wetter） upper treeline.
The magnetic susceptibility of loess from the Ily Basin,northwestern China shows maximum values in S0 paleosols but minimum values in other paleosols,the mechanism of which has been well debated.In this work,systematic magnetic measurements were made on a representative section from Neleke county.The results show that the loess horizons(L1,L2 and L3) have multi-domain magnetite grains of aeolian origin,S0 is characterized by production of pedogenetic ultrafine-grained ferrimagnetic minerals,and the other paleosols(S1,S2,and S3) are characterized by the formation of nonferrimagnetic minerals associated with waterlogging.The correlation between the low concentration of ferrimagnets,high paramagnetic content,high magnetic coercivity remanence,fine ferrimagnetic grain size and intensified pedogenesis suggest two competing processes of pedogenetic enhancement and pedogenetic depletion in the lower paleosols.Pedogenetic depletion dominates and is responsible for the low susceptibility.Changes in magnetic grain size distribution occur during pedogenetic depletion.The susceptibility variations are of multiple origins in the loess of the Ily Basin.Pedogenetic enhancement,pedogenetic depletion,and allochthonous input of magnetic minerals should all be taken into account to explain the variations of magnetic parameters.
The spatial shift of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) is analyzed by using the Twentieth Century Reanalysis version 2 dataset and identifying NAO action centers directly on winter mean sealevel pressure (SLP) anomaly maps. The spatial shift of the NAO is characterized by four NAO spatial shift indices: the zonal and meridional shifts of the NAO southern and northern action centers. It is found that the zonal and meridional shift trends of the NAO action centers move along a path of southwest-northwest direction. Spectral analysis shows that the four NAO spatial shift indices have periodicity of 2-6 years and the NAO index has periodicity of 2-3 years in terms of high-frequency variations. On a decadal time scale, the NAO spatial shift indices are closely (positively) related to the NAO index, which is in agreement with previous studies of the relationship between the NAO index and the spatial shift of the NAO pattern. However, there is no relationship between the NAO index and the meridional shift of the northern action center on an interannual time scale. The significant relationship between the NAO index and the interannual variability of NAO spatial shift indices is very likely to be associated with synopticscale Rossby wave breaking, which generates surface pressure anomalies and thus affects the phase and pattern of the NAO. The correlations of winter westerly winds over 90°W-0° and the NAO index and the NAO spatial shift indices have a '+ - + -' structure from the Equator to the North Pole. Although there is close correlation between the NAO spatial shift indices and the strength of the zonal winds in the North Atlantic region, the effect of the zonal winds on the NAO spatial shift differs at different latitudes. Hence, the role of the zonal winds is probably a result of the NAO spatial shifts.
