Manchuku – Russian meet Japanese for duel
Development of extreme winter weather of 1939/40
from the North Pole down to the middle latitudes all over the northern
hemisphere, may have received some contribution from the Far East as
well. With
less water in the air, more easily the artic air could move south.
North
America wondered what had caused the unusual dry air in November 1939
(NYT, 7
January 1940).
At the time WWII started in Europe, the
Chinese-Japanese undeclared military conflict was already in its
thirty-second
month. By February 1940, more than 4 Million people had died and
another 5
Million had been wounded (NYT, 11 February 1940). This fighting should
not be
ignored while studying anthropogenic weather changes although there is
little
scope to pay much attention to this distant scenario. It would
certainly be
difficult to pinpoint “major activities” that may have had
an impact on
the
atmosphere. In this context the encounter between Russia and Japan in
autumn
1939 (NYT, 17 September 1939) should also be mentioned here.
Only ten days before WWII started, on 20 August
1939, the Red Army with 100,000 troops went into combat with Japanese
Army
comprising 70,000 soldiers (Kwantung Army) at Nomonham, a place on the
boarder
between Outer Mongolia and Manchuku in fine weather (Lit.: Coox)[1].The Soviet forces had
brought with them more than 400 tanks, 200 heavy
guns, 400 armoured cars, 500-700 planes and several thousand tons of
ammunition, shells and bombs to the Far East, over a distance of 3,000
kilometres. Presumably not less military equipment would have been
available
with the Kwantung Army, which eventually was the loser in this event
with
20,000 men dead, when the truce was signed on September 16. The
Soviet’s use of
massive tanks and their superior military tactics proved successful.
Both sides
suffered considerable losses. The weather also may have contributed to
the
losses. This continental region is usually relatively dry. One wonders
whether
the air had become ‘dryer’ during several days of fighting.
Two brief
reports
quoted by Coox (Lit.: Coox)[2]
may serve as an illustration:
- Rain had
been coming down for days, and on the night of 9th, weather
became
very cold, wind became gusty, and snow fell hard. <> Some
progress was
seen on the bridge by the early afternoon on the 9th, but as
the
storm intensified, river current quickened and water rose to two and a
half
meters.
- On 10September:
‘Firing by the infantry began at 6 a.m. followed by an artillery
duel.
Five
hours later, rain changed to snow again, and it grew intensely
cold’.
This happened in a region, which generally saw
little rain. Contribution by war on “rain forcing” was
presumably very
small
with no impact outside the combat zone. But by mid September 1939 with
WWII
already two weeks old with Poland almost doomed, a 1,000 km defence
lines
activated between the English Channel and North Sea to Switzerland,
above
average rain fell in central Europe. (Rain-Making 1939, 2_31) It seems
reasonable to ask whether this event in Europe has had a direct link to
lack of
rain in the USA, as the NYT (8 October 1939) reported under the
headline “Wheat
Belt Frets as Rains Hold Off”. At the same time California and
Arizona
had had
very high precipitation (370% and 335% above normal during September).
But for
this, it might be reasonable to link the impact of war activities in
Europe to
lack of rain in the USA. (USA dried out 1939,2_32)
Effect of record Cold January on War in
China
The war in China saw many battles in late 1939. In
January 1940 very cold air crept in from the North. Following newspaper
( NYT) reports
illustrate the event as under:
- CHUNGKING,
China, January 23 – The Chinese claimed an important victory over
Japanese
forces north of Hupeh today. A Japanese column of 20,000 men advancing
northwards from Suihsien, was said to have been crushed at Kaocheng by
frontal
attacks. Meanwhile snow blankets cover most of the battlefields and
record cold
weather is gripping most parts of China.
- HONK KONG,
January 23 (AP) – In battles fought in pelting snowstorms and
bitter
cold, the
Chinese reported today that they had repulsed a Japanese attack near
Chaocheng
in Western Shantung Province; foiled a Japanese attempt to break
through their
lines in Northern Hupeh Province and dynamited two trains carrying
Japanese
troops in Shantung.
- SHANGHAI,
January 23 – More than 650 bodies of homeless beggars and
refugees who
perished
overnight in freezing cold and malnutrition were found in
Shanghai’s
streets
and vacant lots during the last four days of intense cold. More than
450 of
these victims are babies or small children. All parts of China reported
unusually harsh weather, with snow falling in some districts where it
was
unknown for twenty years. Due to poverty and homelessness of millions
of
refugees, based on Shanghai figures, civilian toll consequent to the
cold wave
was estimated at about 65,000..
- HONG KONG,
January 23 (AP) – The cold wave had extended today to
China’s
southernmost
provinces of Kwangtung and Kwangsi. In Changsha, capital of Hunan
Province, the
weather was described as the worst in twenty years. A blinding
snowstorm swept
Lanchow, capital of Kansu, where the cold was said to be the severest
in China..
And the undeclared war went on. Early in
February 1940 the Chinese amassed
400.000 troops at Nansing and fought a 10-day battle suffering heavy
losses
with about 40,000 dead and 80,000 wounded (NYT, 08 February 1940).
Further information on events in China in
late 1939
Brief,
unilateral and incomplete selection from NYT reports)
2 October 1939;
“…that since the Japan-Soviet armistice on the Manchukuo
border
numerous
columns of Russian troops have been entering Sinkiang Province using
highways
connecting Urumchi with Trans-Sibirian Railway. Some reports, which are
causing
alarm in Japanese military circles, declare that the Soviet Union
already has
nearly 300,000 armed men inside Sinkiang. …During the last two
months
immense
war supplies and a number of airplanes from the Soviet reached
China,…”, (NYT,
3 October 1939). Japan claims to have crushed 19 Chinese divisions;
which left
Chinese with 10,000 dead on the field. The Chinese estimated that
20,000
Japanese had been killed or wounded in the last two weeks. (NYT,
ditto).
28 December 1939; 100 Japanese air planes raided the
city of Lanchow for three days in the biggest air attack since
hostilities
started 30 months ago. Lanchow, is an important centre on the supply
route from
Soviet Russia to Chungking. (NYT, 29 December 1939).
28 December 1939; Chinese Army spokesman asserted
that Japan had suffered 100,000 casualties in December on all fronts
(NYT, 29
December 1939)
03 February 1940; The Chinese undertook
mine-sweeping activities in the Yangtze River last year destroying
1,021 mines.
Last month they destroyed an additional 37 mines. (NYT, 3 February
1940).
3 February 1940; Nanning/China. Constant field
artillery and machine gun fire and bombing including two surprise
thrusts by
Japan, were said to have demoralized at least 140,000 of the 400,000
Chinese
soldiers amassed to defend attacks on Nanning. (NYT, 03 February 1940).
3 February 1940; Six church leaders call for embargo
on Japan, saying: “With our aid over 2,000,000 lives have been
lost in
the
conflict. Between 5,000,000 and 10,000,000 other lives have been lost
as a
result of the war and over 60,000,000 people have been rendered
homeless and
destitute.” (NYT, 3 February 1940).
Summary
While looking for reasons as to how arctic air could
move southwards with little resistance immediately after the war had
started in
Europe, the fighting in the Far East in autumn and winter of 1939/40
should not
be ignored. It is probable that, impacts of war in China may have
contributed,
even though to a small extent by way of ‘cloud seeding’
only, to the
severe war
winter of 1939/40 experienced in Europe as well as those two war
winters that followed.
The theory of climatic changes due to impact of wars at sea seems
irrelevant
with regard to Japan’s war with China from 1938-1945. The
Sino-Japanese struggle was a land based war, with nothing in
comparison to the naval warfare in Northern European waters in autumn
1939.
LITERATURE:
Coox, Alvin D.; Nomonhan – Japan Agaist Russia,
1939,
Vol.2, Stanford/CA, 1985
NYT, The New York Times
[1]
Coox, Alvin D.; Nomonhan – Japan Agaist Russia, 1939, Vol.2,
Stanford/CA, 1985
[2]Coox,
FN 2
|