Temperature reconstruction from tree-ring maximum density of Balfour spruce in eastern Tibet, China

Wood from Balfour spruce [Picea likiangensis var. balfburiana (Rehd. et Wils.)] was collected at three sites in eastern Tibet. Maximum latewood densities (MXD) were measured by X-ray densitometry; individual series were first cross dated and then combined to form a standard chronology. This chronology was significantly correlated with late summer temperatures on the eastern Tibetan Plateau. It was used to reconstruct the August-September mean temperature for the period 1695-2000 A.D., and it explained the 63.5% of the total temperature variance. Wavelet analysis of the reconstructed temperature series suggested the existence of a 20-year climatic cycle during the period 1800-1860 and a similar to 50-year cycle at the beginning of the twentieth century. Copyright (C) 2009 Royal Meteorological Society