Analyses of worldwide surface solar radiation (SSR) observations have revealed SSR decreased from 1960s to 1980s across the world (known as “global dimming”) and thereafter SSR recovered until the end of the 20th century (known as “global brightening”).The decadal variations in SSR are gradually recognized.However,the cause of dimming/brightening and the spatial extent of these changes are not fully understood and worthy of further study.Based on the 1960-2009 meteorological data from 542 stations across China,the first aim of the present work is to quantify the difference in dimming and brightening between urban and rural regions during 1961 to 2009.Secondly,the possible reasons of dimming and brightening are investigated by analyzing the trend of total cloud cover (TCC),low cloud cover (LCC),water vapor content (WVC) and aerosol optical depth (AOD).Thirdly,the relationship between SSR and temperature among urban and rural regions is discussed.