Abstract
Global precipitation data sets with high spatial and temporal resolution are needed for many applications, but they were unavailable before the recent creation of several such satellite products. Here, we evaluate four different satellite data sets of hourly or 3-hourly precipitation (namely CMORPH, PERSIANN, TRMM 3B42 and a microwave-only product referred to as MI) by comparing the spatial patterns in seasonal mean precipitation amount, daily precipitation frequency and intensity, and the diurnal and semidiurnal cycles among them and with surface synoptic weather reports. We found that these high-resolution products show spatial patterns in seasonal mean precipitation amount comparable to other monthly products for the low- and mid-latitudes, and the mean daily precipitation frequency and intensity maps are similar among these pure satellite-based precipitation data sets and consistent with the frequency derived using weather reports over land. The satellite data show that spatial variations in mean precipitation amount come largely from precipitation frequency rather than intensity, and that the use of satellite infrared (IR) observations to improve sampling does not change the mean frequency, intensity and the diurnal cycle significantly. Consistent with previous studies, the satellite data show that sub-daily variations in precipitation are dominated by the 24-h cycle, which has an afternoon–evening maximum and mean-to-peak amplitude of 30–100% of the daily mean in precipitation amount over most land areas during summer. Over most oceans, the 24-h harmonic has a peak from midnight to early morning with an amplitude of 10–30% during both winter and summer. These diurnal results are broadly consistent with those based on the weather reports, although the time of maximum in the satellite precipitation is a few hours later (especially for TRMM and PERSIANN) than that in the surface observations over most land and ocean, and it is closer to the phase of showery precipitation from the weather reports. The TRMM and PERSIANN precipitation shows a spatially coherent time of maximum around 0300–0600 local solar time (LST) for a weak (amplitude <20%) semi-diurnal (12-h) cycle over most mid- to high-latitudes, comparable to 0400–0600 LST in the surface data. The satellite data also confirm the notion that the diurnal cycle of precipitation amount comes mostly from its frequency rather than its intensity over most low and mid-latitudes, with the intensity has only about half of the strength of the diurnal cycle in the frequency and amount. The results suggest that these relatively new precipitation products can be useful for many applications.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adler RF, Huffman GJ, Chang A, Ferraro R, Xie P, Janowiak J, Rudolf B, Schneider U, Curtis S, Bolvin D, Gruber A, Susskind J, Arkin P, Nelkin E (2003) The version-2 Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) monthly precipitation analysis (1979-present). J Hydrometeorol 4:1147–1167
Bowman KP, Collier JC, North GR, Wu QY, Ha EH, Hardin J (2005) Diurnal cycle of tropical precipitation in Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite and ocean buoy rain gauge data. J Geophys Res 110:D21104, doi:21110.21029/22005JD005763
Carbone RE, Tuttle JD, Ahijevych DA, Trier SB (2002) Inferences of predictability associated with warm season precipitation episodes. J Atmos Sci 59:2033–2056
Chang ATC, Chiu LS, Yang G (1995) Diurnal cycle of oceanic precipitation from SSM/I data. Mon Weather Rev 123:3371–3380
Dai A (2001a) Global precipitation and thunderstorm frequencies. Part I: seasonal and interannual variations. J Clim 14:1092–1111
Dai A (2001b) Global precipitation and thunderstorm frequencies. Part II: diurnal variations. J Clim 14:1112–1128
Dai A (2006) Precipitation characteristics in eighteen coupled climate models. J Clim 19:4605–4630
Dai A, Deser C (1999) Diurnal and semidiurnal variations in global surface wind and divergence fields. J Geophys Res 104:31109–31125
Dai A, Fung IY, Del Genio AD (1997) Surface observed global land precipitation variations during 1900–88. J Clim 10:2943–2962
Dai A, Giorgi F, Trenberth KE (1999) Observed and model-simulated diurnal cycles of precipitation over the contiguous United States. J Geophys Res Atmos 104:6377–6402
Fujinami H, Nomura S, Yasunari T (2005) Characteristics of diurnal variations in convection and precipitaiton over the southern Tibetan Plateau during summer. SOLA 1:49–52
Hamilton K (1981) A note on the observed diurnal and semi-diurnal rainfall variations. J Geophys Res 86:2122–2126
Higgins WR, Janowiak JE, Yao Y-P (1996) A gridded hourly precipitation database for the United States (1963-1993). NCEP/Climate Prediction Center Atlas No. 1: US Department of Commerce, 47 pp
Hong Y, Hsu KL, Sorooshian S, Gao XG (2005) Improved representation of diurnal variability of rainfall retrieved from the Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission Microwave Imager adjusted Precipitation Estimation From Remotely Sensed Information Using Artificial Neural Networks (PERSIANN) system. J Geophys Res 110:D06102, 06110.01029/02004JD005301
Hsu KL, Gao XG, Sorooshian S, Gupta HV (1997) Precipitation estimation from remotely sensed information using artificial neural networks. J Appl Meteorol 36:1176–1190
Huffman GJ, Adler RF, Morrissey MM, Bolvin DT, Curtis S, Joyce R, McGavock B, Susskind J (2001) Global precipitation at one-degree daily resolution from multisatellite observations. J Hydrometeorol 2:36–50
Huffman GJ, Adler RF, Bolvin DT, Gu GJ, Nelkin EJ, Bowman KP, Hong Y, Stocker EF, Wolff DB (2007) The TRMM multisatellite precipitation analysis (TMPA): quasi-global, multiyear, combined-sensor precipitation estimates at fine scales. J Hydrometeorol 8:38–55
Janowiak JE, Arkin PA, Morrissey M (1994) An examination of the diurnal cycle in oceanic tropical rainfall using satellite and in situ data. Mon Weather Rev 122:2296–2311
Joyce RJ, Janowiak JE, Arkin PA, Xie PP (2004) CMORPH: a method that produces global precipitation estimates from passive microwave and infrared data at high spatial and temporal resolution. J Hydrometeorol 5:487–503
Liang XZ, Li L, Dai A, Kunkel KE (2004) Regional climate model simulation of summer precipitation diurnal cycle over the United States. Geophys Res Lett 31:L24208, doi:24210.21029/22004GL021054
Lin X, Randall DA, Fowler LD (2000) Diurnal variability of the hydrologic cycle and radiative fluxes: comparisons between observations and a GCM. J Clim 13:4159–4179
Nesbitt SW, Zipser EJ (2003) The diurnal cycle of rainfall and convective intensity according to three years of TRMM measurements. J Clim 16:1456–1475
New M, Todd M, Hulme M, Jones P (2001) Precipitation measurements and trends in the twentieth century. Int J Climatol 21:1899–1922
Oki T, Musiake K (1994) Seasonal change of the diurnal cycle of precipitation over Japan and Malaysia. J Appl Meteorol 33:1445–1463
Okumura K, Satomura T, Oki T, Khantiyanan W (2003) Diurnal variation of precipitation by moving mesoscale systems: radar observations in northern Thailand. Geophys Res Lett 30:2073, doi:2010.1029/2003GL018302
Pinker RT, Zhao Y, Akoshile C, Janowiak J, Arkin P (2006) Diurnal and seasonal variability of rainfall in the sub-Sahel as seen from observations, satellites and a numerical model. Geophys Res Lett 33:L07806, doi:07810.01029/02005GL025192
Sorooshian S, Hsu K-L, Gao X, Gupta HV, Imam B, Braithwaite D (2000) Evaluation of PERSIANN system satellite-based estimates of tropical rainfall. Bull Am Meteorol Soc 81:2035–2046
Sorooshian S, Gao X, Maddox RA, Hong Y, Imam B (2002) Diurnal variability of tropical rainfall retrieved from combined GOES and TRMM satellite information. J Clim 15:983–1001
Trier SB, Parsons DB (1993) Evolution of environmental-conditions preceding the development of a nocturnal mesoscale convective complex. Mon Weather Rev 121:1078–1098
Wallace JM (1975) Diurnal variations in precipitation and thunderstorm frequency over conterminous United States. Mon Weather Rev 103:406–419
Wang CC, Chen GTJ, Carbone RE (2004) A climatology of warm-season cloud patterns over east Asia based on GMS infrared brightness temperature observations. Mon Weather Rev 132:1606–1629
Xie PP, Arkin PA (1997) Global precipitation: a 17-year monthly analysis based on gauge observations, satellite estimates, and numerical model outputs. Bull Am Meteorol Soc 78:2539–2558
Xie PP, Chen MY, Joyce R, Janowiak JE, Arkin PA (2005) Diurnal cycle in the North America Monsoon. Bull Am Meteorol Soc 86:26–28
Yang GY, Slingo J (2001) The diurnal cycle in the Tropics. Mon Weather Rev 129:784–801
Yang S., Smith EA (2006) Mechanisms for diurnal variability of global tropical rainfall observed from TRMM. J Climate 19:5190–5226
Yin XG, Gruber A, Arkin P (2004) Comparison of the GPCP and CMAP merged gauge-satellite monthly precipitation products for the period 1979–2001. J Hydrometeorol 5:1207–1222
Acknowledgments
The National Center for Atmospheric Research is sponsored by the National Science Foundation. This work was partly supported by NASA Grant No. NNX07AD77G and NCAR’s Water Cycle Program.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Dai, A., Lin, X. & Hsu, KL. The frequency, intensity, and diurnal cycle of precipitation in surface and satellite observations over low- and mid-latitudes. Clim Dyn 29, 727–744 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-007-0260-y
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-007-0260-y