Intercomparison of Diurnal Variability of Rainfall Retrieved from PERSIANN-CCS and NAME NERN Gage Measurements in North American Monsoon (NAM) area

Recent progress in satellite remote-sensing techniques for precipitation estimation, along with more accurate tropical rainfall measurements from Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Microwave Imager (TMI) and precipitation radar (PR) instruments, have made it possible to monitor tropical rainfall diurnal patterns and their intensities from satellite information.

The PERSIANN-CCS uses computer image processing and pattern recognition techniques to develop a patch-based cloud classification and rainfall estimation system based on co-registered passive microwave and infrared images from Low Earth-orbiting and Geostationary satellites.

In this study, we report the intercomparison of diurnal variations of rainfall retrieved from PERSIANN-CCS and NAME NERN gage data within North American Monsoon area. These comparisons indicate that the PERSIANN-CCS at the selected resolutions produce estimates that are similar in magnitude and phase with NAME gage measurements. Our results by PERSIANN-CCS are:

1) Maximum rainfall occurs earlier in the day at high elevation than low elevations. 2) Maximum rainfall occurs earlier in the day in south than in north. 3) At most NAME gage stations, diurnal variations derived from PERSIANN-CCS have similar phase changes with NAME gage data, while more or less magnitude differences and variances exist.

Corresponding Author:

Name: Jiangtao Cheng Organization: University of California, Irvine Address: Civil & Environmental Engineering E/4130 Engineering Gateway Irvine, CA 92697-2175 E-mail: chengjt@uci.edu