An expedition team on “Land-Atmosphere Interaction and Its Climate Effect” embarked on their journey totaling more than 10,000 kilometers to Third Pole from Lanzhou on July 15th, 2021. The expedition was part of the STEP* task of “Westerly-Monsoon Interaction and Its Impact”. The expedition team travelled across Dunhuang, Golmud, and then proceeded along the Qinghai-Tibet Highway into Tibet. They passed by Hoh Xil to the northern Tibet, and then followed the Xinjiang-Tibet route all the way west to Ngari. They stopped by Burang, Gyirong, Mount Everest, and also reached Nyingchi, Metok and Changdu via the Tea Horse Road in southeastern Tibet. Their footprints traversed the main part of the Third Pole and the precipitous alpine and valley areas in its southeast, all key locations for observing energy and water exchanges between the land surface and the atmosphere in the Third Pole region.
[video:地气0918]
* STEP refers to the TPE-related science project of the Second Tibetan Plateau Scientific Expedition and Research
Return to Naqu, Place of Memories
On July 24th, a group led by Prof. Ma Yaoming rendezvoused with Prof. Hu Zeyong at Naqu Station. The station is located at the heart of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (91°53’E,31°22’N) at an elevation of 4,505m above the sea level, where the grounds are predominantly covered by vegetation such as wormwood. Naqu Station is equipped with a wide array of observation instruments able to measure atmosphere, water, soil and vegetation. Prof. Hu Zeyong introduced in detail the surrounding environments and geographical features of the observation station, explained the observation mechanisms and principles of the various instruments, and had in-depth talks with the expedition members.
Upon seeing the newly constructed office and dorm buildings, Prof. Ma Yaoming remarked that conditions had been improved by leaps and bounds comparing with before, when even water supply was a problem. Expedition members were all taken aback as they imagined the immense contributions of the plateau people over the years and their unwavering devotions to this land that made all these a reality. These manifest their youth, and manifest their lifelong aspiration.
Prof. Ma Yaoming was relaying stories to expedition members about how the older generation of the “Qinghai-Tibet people” contributed to the plateau
expedition members were embracing the first sunray of the day as they visited Tuotuohe Station, the world’s highest radiosonde station (4,534m in elevation)
Expedition members were listening to the moving tales about the “old Qinghai-Tibet” team members at the Beiluhe Station of the Chinese Academy of Sciences
Profs. Ma Yaoming and Hu Zeyong were combing through data from the Naqu Station
Prof. Hu Zeyong was introducing observation instruments and their working principles
Looking back at those difficult years with a smile
Traveling a Thousand Kilometer a Day to Safeguard Observation Instruments
Early morning on July 28th, the day was just breaking, the five-person advance team set off from Coqen to Rutog County in the Ngari area, ready to finish the maintenance work of the monitoring instruments and data collection of the station as scheduled. The regular driving time to cover the 870 kilometers is usually twelve and a half hours. If everything went well and all instruments checked out fine, the squad would be able to settle down comfortably at Senggezangbo (Shiquanhe) around 8 p.m. that evening. The journey from Coqen to Rutog was comparatively smooth. There was greater harmony and tacit cooperation among members after the initial ice-breaking period, as they had gotten acquainted when working together at several earlier stops. Consequently, it only took 40 minutes to get the job done for the regular maintenance check of the monitoring instruments and data collection, and they even managed to update the program of the data acquisition unit. On completing the task of verifying that the instrument was in sound working condition, the team took off and made haste to Senggezangbo, the destination today. After almost over an hour on the road covering a distance of around 80 kilometers, the team members realized through the radio monitoring platform that there was an emergency variable abnormality in the observation system of the station, and that it failed to refresh regular data. After ascertaining repeatedly that this variable would not cause any harmful effect to the rest of the observation system, nevertheless, the advance team decided to return to Rutog to squash any chance of hindrance to the normal operation of the observation system and accurate and uninterrupted data collection. After spending one and a half hour on the examination and eventually resolving the problem, it was already 1 p.m. when the advance team finally settled down at Senggezangbo. It is exactly with this “pragmatic, daring, resilient and fearless” Qinghai-Tibetan scientific research spirit practiced by the plateau people generations after generations that the Qinghai-Tibet Scientific Expedition and Research program can continue to flourish vibrantly with bountiful vitality.
An expedition member was maintaining instrument
Expedition members were inspecting observation data
Expedition members were inspecting the observation instrument to ensure everything worked properly
Group photo of the members of the advance team
Facing Challenges Fearlessly, Passing Down the Torch Proudly
The entire Scientific Expedition and Research team entered Medog on August 8th. Despite the fact that heavy torrential rain in the summer season already submerged some of the roads, the Scientific Expedition and Research Team upheld the spirit “facing challenges fearlessly, march forward courageously” and decided to forge ahead. During the process of equipment maintenance and data check, team members detected a number of problems such as weak signals of lens and energy balance closure imbalance. Pooling together the wisdom and efforts of the entire team, members coordinated on the ground and above ground, and constructed a simple installation with great teamwork efficiency and synergy. During this expedition, members were not only inspired by the Qinghai-Tibetan spirit of the older generations who demonstrated steadfast assiduity and perseverance to overcome adversity, but also inherited and carried forward the remarkable Qinghai-Tibetan spirit of “tenacity, bravery, endurance, unity and selflessness”, marching forward fearlessly in face of adversity.
Expedition members were reinforcing the observation instrument
Expedition members were maintaining the observation instrument installed high above the ground
Expedition members were maintaining the instrument
Editor's note: this piece is translated from the STEP expedition team's record.
An expedition team on “Land-Atmosphere Interaction and Its Climate Effect” embarked on their journey totaling more than 10,000 kilometers to Third Pole from Lanzhou on July 15th, 2021. The expedition was part of the STEP* task of “Westerly-Monsoon Interaction and Its Impact”. The expedition team travelled across Dunhuang, Golmud, and then proceeded along the Qinghai-Tibet Highway into Tibet. They passed by Hoh Xil to the northern Tibet, and then followed the Xinjiang-Tibet route all the way west to Ngari. They stopped by Burang, Gyirong, Mount Everest, and also reached Nyingchi, Metok and Changdu via the Tea Horse Road in southeastern Tibet. Their footprints traversed the main part of the Third Pole and the precipitous alpine and valley areas in its southeast, all key locations for observing energy and water exchanges between the land surface and the atmosphere in the Third Pole region.
[video:地气0918]
* STEP refers to the TPE-related science project of the Second Tibetan Plateau Scientific Expedition and Research
Return to Naqu, Place of Memories
On July 24th, a group led by Prof. Ma Yaoming rendezvoused with Prof. Hu Zeyong at Naqu Station. The station is located at the heart of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (91°53’E,31°22’N) at an elevation of 4,505m above the sea level, where the grounds are predominantly covered by vegetation such as wormwood. Naqu Station is equipped with a wide array of observation instruments able to measure atmosphere, water, soil and vegetation. Prof. Hu Zeyong introduced in detail the surrounding environments and geographical features of the observation station, explained the observation mechanisms and principles of the various instruments, and had in-depth talks with the expedition members.
Upon seeing the newly constructed office and dorm buildings, Prof. Ma Yaoming remarked that conditions had been improved by leaps and bounds comparing with before, when even water supply was a problem. Expedition members were all taken aback as they imagined the immense contributions of the plateau people over the years and their unwavering devotions to this land that made all these a reality. These manifest their youth, and manifest their lifelong aspiration.
Prof. Ma Yaoming was relaying stories to expedition members about how the older generation of the “Qinghai-Tibet people” contributed to the plateau
expedition members were embracing the first sunray of the day as they visited Tuotuohe Station, the world’s highest radiosonde station (4,534m in elevation)
Expedition members were listening to the moving tales about the “old Qinghai-Tibet” team members at the Beiluhe Station of the Chinese Academy of Sciences
Profs. Ma Yaoming and Hu Zeyong were combing through data from the Naqu Station
Prof. Hu Zeyong was introducing observation instruments and their working principles
Looking back at those difficult years with a smile
Traveling a Thousand Kilometer a Day to Safeguard Observation Instruments
Early morning on July 28th, the day was just breaking, the five-person advance team set off from Coqen to Rutog County in the Ngari area, ready to finish the maintenance work of the monitoring instruments and data collection of the station as scheduled. The regular driving time to cover the 870 kilometers is usually twelve and a half hours. If everything went well and all instruments checked out fine, the squad would be able to settle down comfortably at Senggezangbo (Shiquanhe) around 8 p.m. that evening. The journey from Coqen to Rutog was comparatively smooth. There was greater harmony and tacit cooperation among members after the initial ice-breaking period, as they had gotten acquainted when working together at several earlier stops. Consequently, it only took 40 minutes to get the job done for the regular maintenance check of the monitoring instruments and data collection, and they even managed to update the program of the data acquisition unit. On completing the task of verifying that the instrument was in sound working condition, the team took off and made haste to Senggezangbo, the destination today. After almost over an hour on the road covering a distance of around 80 kilometers, the team members realized through the radio monitoring platform that there was an emergency variable abnormality in the observation system of the station, and that it failed to refresh regular data. After ascertaining repeatedly that this variable would not cause any harmful effect to the rest of the observation system, nevertheless, the advance team decided to return to Rutog to squash any chance of hindrance to the normal operation of the observation system and accurate and uninterrupted data collection. After spending one and a half hour on the examination and eventually resolving the problem, it was already 1 p.m. when the advance team finally settled down at Senggezangbo. It is exactly with this “pragmatic, daring, resilient and fearless” Qinghai-Tibetan scientific research spirit practiced by the plateau people generations after generations that the Qinghai-Tibet Scientific Expedition and Research program can continue to flourish vibrantly with bountiful vitality.
An expedition member was maintaining instrument
Expedition members were inspecting observation data
Expedition members were inspecting the observation instrument to ensure everything worked properly
Group photo of the members of the advance team
Facing Challenges Fearlessly, Passing Down the Torch Proudly
The entire Scientific Expedition and Research team entered Medog on August 8th. Despite the fact that heavy torrential rain in the summer season already submerged some of the roads, the Scientific Expedition and Research Team upheld the spirit “facing challenges fearlessly, march forward courageously” and decided to forge ahead. During the process of equipment maintenance and data check, team members detected a number of problems such as weak signals of lens and energy balance closure imbalance. Pooling together the wisdom and efforts of the entire team, members coordinated on the ground and above ground, and constructed a simple installation with great teamwork efficiency and synergy. During this expedition, members were not only inspired by the Qinghai-Tibetan spirit of the older generations who demonstrated steadfast assiduity and perseverance to overcome adversity, but also inherited and carried forward the remarkable Qinghai-Tibetan spirit of “tenacity, bravery, endurance, unity and selflessness”, marching forward fearlessly in face of adversity.
Expedition members were reinforcing the observation instrument
Expedition members were maintaining the observation instrument installed high above the ground
Expedition members were maintaining the instrument
Editor's note: this piece is translated from the STEP expedition team's record.
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Third Pole Environment(TPE)
Building 3,No.16 Lincui Road,Chaoyang District，Beijing, China
