Trends of сlimate change in the Ukrainian Carpathians during last 130 years

Abstract

Driven by multi-level natural cycles and reinforced by anthropogenic influences climate variability considers the most dynamic landscape process. The last century serves as a clear evidence for significant dynamics, especially in mountain regions. In response to last workshops of the regional science network Science for the Carpathians (S4C) and Forum Carpaticum (Kohler, 2009; Björnsen Gurung et al. 2009, Kozak et al., 2010; Chalai et al. 2012), pan-Carpathian international climate research is still not coordinated though seems to be rather specific to the European region. Gaps in data, lack of representative stations and their time-series at high latitudes, restricted access to meteoinformation in the Eastern part of Carpathians suggest the main difficulties for the holistic interpretation of Carpathian climate.

The analysis of climate variability in Ukrainian Carpathians turns out to be a crucial chain in solving of the problem in the whole. Consequently, the paper deals with an attempt to interpret the climate dynamics of the Ukrainian part of Carpathians during the final two centuries in order to provide the basis for a regional climate model as well as to distinguish periods and spaces still to be analyzed. Several studies in the light of the problem were conducted by the scientists ofYuriyFedkovichChernivtsiNationalUniversity. In particular, the analysis of mesoclimatic peculiarities of landscapes of Ukrainian Carpathians was fulfilled by Kynal O. (2008) and Kholiavchuk D. (2012). The climate features of adjacent territories like the region of the Middle Dnister river valley were investigated by Kholiavchuk D. (2009).