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Climate
China
has a marked continental monsoonal climate characterized by great
variety. Northerly winds prevail in winter, while southerly winds
reign in summer. The four seasons are quite distinct. The rainy
season coincides with the hot season. From September to April the
following year, the dry and cold winter monsoons from Siberia and
Mongolia in the north gradually become weak as they reach the southern
part of the country, resulting in cold and dry winters and great
differences in temperature. The summer monsoons last from April
to September.
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Qiandaohu Lake in Zhejiang Province.
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The
warm and moist summer monsoons from the oceans bring abundant rainfall
and high temperatures, with little difference in temperature between
the south and the north. China’s complex and varied climate results
in a great variety of temperature belts, and dry and moist zones.
In terms of temperature, the nation can be sectored from south to
north into equatorial, tropical, sub-tropical, warm-temperate, temperate,
and cold-temperate zones; in terms of moisture, it can be sectored
from southeast to northwest into humid (32 percent of land area),
semi-humid (15 percent), semi-arid (22 percent) and arid zones (31
percent). |
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