Langzhong
| Langzhong 阆中市 | |
|---|---|
| Provincial city | |
.png) Location of Langzhong City (red) in Nanchong City (yellow) and Sichuan | |
  Langzhong Location of the city centre in Sichuan | |
| Coordinates: 31°35′N 105°58′E / 31.583°N 105.967°ECoordinates: 31°35′N 105°58′E / 31.583°N 105.967°E | |
| Country | People's Republic of China |
| Province | Sichuan |
| Provincial city | Langzhong |
| Administrative divisions of the People's Republic of China | 52 |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1,878 km2 (725 sq mi) |
| Time zone | China Standard Time (UTC+8) |
Langzhong (simplified Chinese: 阆中; traditional Chinese: 閬中; pinyin: Làngzhōng) is a city in northeastern Sichuan province, People's Republic of China, located on the middle reaches of the Jialing River. It is a county-level city under the administration of Sichuan and has a total population of 840,000 with 200,000 residing in the urban area.
History
In 314 BCE,[1] Langzhong was established as Langzhong County (阆中县) and for more than two millennia has been a hub of northern Sichuan. During the Warring States period it was for a time the capital of the State of Ba. The city then became an important centre for astronomical research in China during the Han and Tang Dynasties. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, it served as the provisional provincial capital for a total of 10 years. Since 1985, the PRC government has awarded Langzhong with various accolades on three separate occasions.[1] In 1991, it was finally upgraded to county-level city status.
Geography and climate
Langzhong is located in the northeast of the province and the northern part of the Sichuan Basin on the middle reaches of the Jialing River. Within the city's administrative area, elevations generally increase from southwest to northeast and range from 328 metres (1,076 ft) to 888 metres (2,913 ft), while rivers flow for 59.4 kilometres (36.9 mi).[1] The area is dominated by low-lying mountains and hills.
As with much of the rest of the province, Langzhong has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cwa), with dry, temperate winters, and long, hot, humid summers. The monthly daily average temperature ranges from 6.1 °C (43.0 °F) in January to 26.6 °C (79.9 °F) in August. The frost-free period lasts 290 days per year, while annual sunshine amounts to 1,400 hours.[1] Close to two-thirds of the annual rainfall occurs from June to September.
| Climate data for Langzhong (1971−2000) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 17.6 (63.7) |
21.7 (71.1) |
30.4 (86.7) |
33.4 (92.1) |
36.4 (97.5) |
36.0 (96.8) |
37.4 (99.3) |
39.5 (103.1) |
37.9 (100.2) |
30.7 (87.3) |
27.0 (80.6) |
18.6 (65.5) |
39.5 (103.1) |
| Average high °C (°F) | 9.5 (49.1) |
11.7 (53.1) |
16.2 (61.2) |
22.3 (72.1) |
26.5 (79.7) |
28.9 (84) |
31.0 (87.8) |
31.7 (89.1) |
26.0 (78.8) |
21.1 (70) |
16.1 (61) |
10.8 (51.4) |
21.0 (69.8) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 6.1 (43) |
8.0 (46.4) |
12.1 (53.8) |
17.4 (63.3) |
21.6 (70.9) |
24.6 (76.3) |
26.5 (79.7) |
26.6 (79.9) |
21.9 (71.4) |
17.2 (63) |
12.3 (54.1) |
7.5 (45.5) |
16.8 (62.2) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 3.5 (38.3) |
5.3 (41.5) |
8.9 (48) |
13.5 (56.3) |
17.8 (64) |
21.0 (69.8) |
23.1 (73.6) |
23.0 (73.4) |
19.1 (66.4) |
14.6 (58.3) |
9.6 (49.3) |
5.2 (41.4) |
13.7 (56.7) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −3.1 (26.4) |
−1.7 (28.9) |
−0.9 (30.4) |
5.0 (41) |
10.0 (50) |
14.3 (57.7) |
17.4 (63.3) |
16.5 (61.7) |
13.3 (55.9) |
2.6 (36.7) |
0.7 (33.3) |
−4.1 (24.6) |
−4.1 (24.6) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 12.8 (0.504) |
15.1 (0.594) |
28.3 (1.114) |
64.0 (2.52) |
108.8 (4.283) |
145.6 (5.732) |
197.4 (7.772) |
177.2 (6.976) |
139.4 (5.488) |
63.4 (2.496) |
33.0 (1.299) |
13.4 (0.528) |
998.4 (39.306) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) | 7.4 | 7.8 | 10.2 | 10.7 | 12.7 | 13.4 | 14.1 | 11.2 | 14.7 | 13.8 | 9.2 | 7.3 | 132.5 |
| Source: Weather China[1] | |||||||||||||