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Precipitation

About: Precipitation is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 32861 publications have been published within this topic receiving 990496 citations. The topic is also known as: rain & rainfall.


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Journal ArticleDOI
Kerry H. Cook1
TL;DR: In this paper, the South Indian convergence zone (SICZ) is identified as a region of enhanced precipitation extending off the southeast coast of southern Africa during austral summer, and an idealized GCM simulation is used to explore the basic dynamics of LBCZs in the Tropics and subtropics.
Abstract: The South Indian convergence zone (SICZ) is identified in this paper as a region of enhanced precipitation extending off the southeast coast of southern Africa during austral summer. Unlike the South Pacific convergence zone, the SICZ is a land-based convergence zone (LBCZ), with position and intensity at least partially determined by surface conditions over southern Africa. An idealized GCM simulation is used to explore the basic dynamics of LBCZs in the Tropics and subtropics. Output from a realistic GCM simulation and the National Centers for Environmental Prediction–National Center for Atmospheric Research 40-Year Reanalysis are analyzed to apply this basic dynamical framework to the case of the SICZ. In contrast to the intertropical convergence zone where column moisture convergence is primarily due to meridional wind convergence in the moist environment, precipitation within the SICZ and the LBCZs in general is also supported by zonal wind convergence, moisture convergence by transient eddy...

206 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a state-of-the-art mesoscale atmospheric model was used to investigate the three-dimensional structure and evolution of shallow convective clouds and precipitation in heterogeneous and homogeneous domains.
Abstract: A state-of-the-art mesoscale atmospheric model was used to investigate the three-dimensional structure and evolution of shallow convective clouds and precipitation in heterogeneous and homogeneous domains In general, the spatial distribution of clouds and precipitation is strongly affected by the landscape structure When the domain is homogeneous, they appear to be randomly distributed However, when the landscape structure triggers the formation of mesoscale circulations, they concentrate in the originally dry part of the domain, creating a negative feedback which tends to eliminate the landscape discontinuities, and spatially homogenize the land water content The land surface wetness heterogeneity of the domain and the toted amount of water vapor present in the atmosphere (locally evapotranspired and/or advected) affect the precipitation regime In general, the upward motion of mesoscale circulations generated by landscape heterogeneities is stronger than thermal cells induced by turbulence Furthermore, their ability to transport moist, warm air to higher elevations increases the amount of water that can be condensed and precipitated The evolution of shallow convective clouds and precipitation consists of a “build-up phase” during which turbulence is predominant and responsible for the moistening of the atmosphere In heterogeneous domains, it is also responsible for the creation of horizontal pressure gradients leading to the generation of mesoscale circulations This phase occurs during the morning hours From about 1200 until 1600 LST, clouds develop and most of the precipitation is produced This is the “active phase” After 1600 LST, the horizontal thermal and pressure gradients, which fed the energy necessary to create and sustain the mesoscale circulations, gradually disappear This is the “dissipation phase” The differences and similarities obtained between three-dimensional and two-dimensional simulations were also studied These simulations indicate that, unless the landscape presents a clear two-dimensional structure, the use of such a two-dimensional model is not appropriate to simulate this type of clouds and precipitation Conversely, two-dimensional simulations can be confidently used, provided that the simulated domain presents a two-dimensional heterogeneity

206 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors found that water deposition from fog accounts for over one-third of total water input during the dry season in tropical rain forests in southern China, suggesting an important role that fog may play in pushing up the northern limit of tropical rain forest in Southeast Asia.
Abstract: Lowland tropical forests once covered a large fraction of tropical southern China, but currently have an extent of ca 633,800 ha, mostly in Xishuangbanna of southern Yunnan. The Xishuangbanna region has a typical monsoon climate with a mean annual temperature ranging between 15.1 ◦ C and 21.7 ◦ C, and precipitation between 1200 and 2500 mm. There is a pronounced dry season between November and April with frequent occurrence of heavy fog. Rainfall during the wet season between May and October accounts for over 80 percent of total annual precipitation. Water deposition from fog accounts for over one-third of total water input during the dry season in the forests, suggesting an important role that fog may play in pushing up the northern limit of tropical rain forest in Southeast Asia.

206 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors evaluate five gridded precipitation data sets derived from remote sensing and interpolation of rain gauge data with ground-based precipitation measurements in the Himalayas.
Abstract: [1] Precipitation is one of the main factors which controls surface processes and landscape morphology. Large orogenic belts such as the Himalayas control precipitation distribution as a result of orographic effects due to their prominent relief. However, precipitation is difficult to monitor because mountain regions are largely inaccessible and therefore not sufficiently covered by ground‐based gauge stations. The complexity of orographic effects resulting from the interaction between elevation and climatic processes and the lack of precise meteorological data thus limit our understanding of climatic influence on landscape formation. Therefore, high‐quality precipitation observations with good spatiotemporal coverage are needed. Here we evaluate five gridded precipitation data sets derived from remote sensing and interpolation of rain gauge data with ground‐based precipitation measurements. First, we evaluate the bulk error of each data set, then we evaluate the temporal quality of data within five watersheds, and last we compare the spatial performance along seven swath profiles across strike to the Himalayan range in Nepal. Our evaluation shows that the data sets vary significantly along the orographic front and get more consistent toward the adjacent low‐relief domains, while bulk errors are largest during monsoon season. In particular, where topographic gradients are important, the resolution of gridded data sets cannot incorporate small‐scale spatial changes of precipitation. We show that the data set derived from interpolation of gauge data performs best in the Himalayas. This study gives an overview on the applicability of precipitation data sets within the Himalayan orographic domains where relief has a pronounced impact on precipitation.

206 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Based on the high-resolution gridding data (CN05) from 2416 station observations, a grid dataset of temperature and precipitation extreme indices with the resolution of 05°× 05° for China region was developed using the approach recommended by the Expert Team on Climate Change Detection and Indices.
Abstract: Based on the high-resolution gridding data (CN05) from 2416 station observations, a grid dataset of temperature and precipitation extreme indices with the resolution of 05° × 05° for China region was developed using the approach recommended by the Expert Team on Climate Change Detection and Indices This article comprehensively presents temporal and spatial changes of these indices for the time period 1961–2010 Results showed widespread significant changes in temperature extremes consistent with warming, for instance, decreases in cold extremes and increases in warm extremes over China The warming in the coldest day and night is larger than the warmest day and night, respectively, which is concurrent with the coldest night larger than the coldest day and the warmest night larger than the warmest day Changes in the number of the cold and warm nights are more remarkable than the cold and warm days Changes in precipitation extremes are, in general, spatially more complex and exhibit a less widespread spatial coverage than the temperature indices, for instance, the patterns of annual total precipitation amount, average daily precipitation rate, and the proportion of heavy precipitation in total annual precipitation are similar with negative trends in a southwest–northeast belt from Southwest China to Northeast China while positive trends in eastern China and northwestern China The consistency of changes in climate extremes from the CN05 with other datasets based on the stations and reanalyses is also analysed

206 citations


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Performance
Metrics
No. of papers in the topic in previous years
YearPapers
20237,839
202214,365
20212,302
20201,964
20191,942
20181,773