Can climate change cause the Yellow River to dry up?

The source region of the Yellow River, China, has experienced eco‐environmental deterioration in recent decades. The Yellow River discharge has reduced to zero numerous times since 1960, which has left a devastating impact on water resources and ecosystems downstream. Seeking to understand the causes of drying up, we analyze the records of discharge, temperature, and precipitation and explore the linkages among them. Using wavelet analysis, we show that the Yellow River discharge represents a comprehensive response to climatic variations in temperature and precipitation. We suggest that the discharge is best explained by variations in temperature over a 35–50 year trend and precipitation over periods of less than 10 years. Zero discharge events can be quantitatively correlated to periods of warming and reduced precipitation. Findings of this study may have a broad implication in assessing how water resources respond to climate changes.