Evaluating TMPA Rainfall over the Sparsely Gauged East African Rift

Monsieurs, Elise; Kirschbaum, Dalia Bach; Tan, Jackson; Maki Mateso, Jean-Claude; Jacobs, Liesbet; Plisnier, Pierre-Denis; Thiery, Wim; Umutoni, Augusta; Musoni, Didace; Bibentyo, Toussaint Mugaruka; Ganza, Gloire Bamulezi; Mawe, Guy Ilombe; Bagalwa, Luc; Kankurize, Clairia; Michellier, Caroline; Stanley, Thomas; Kervyn, Francois; Kervyn, Matthieu; Demoulin, Alain; Dewitte, Olivier

doi:10.1175/jhm-d-18-0103.1

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Journal article

Evaluating TMPA Rainfall over the Sparsely Gauged East African Rift

Monsieurs, Elise Hydrological Sciences Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland
Kirschbaum, Dalia Bach Hydrological Sciences Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland
Tan, Jackson Climate and Radiation Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland
Maki Mateso, Jean-Claude Department of Geophysics, Centre de Recherche en Sciences Naturelles, Lwiro, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Jacobs, Liesbet Department of Geography and Tourism, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
Plisnier, Pierre-Denis G. L. Eco, Grez-Doiceau, Belgium
Thiery, Wim Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
Umutoni, Augusta Ministry of Infrastructure, Kigali, Rwanda
Musoni, Didace Rwanda Meteorology Agency, Kigali, Rwanda
Bibentyo, Toussaint Mugaruka Department of Geology, Université Officielle de Bukavu, Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Ganza, Gloire Bamulezi Department of Geology, Université Officielle de Bukavu, Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Mawe, Guy Ilombe Department of Geology, Université Officielle de Bukavu, Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Bagalwa, Luc Department of Geophysics, Centre de Recherche en Sciences Naturelles, Lwiro, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Kankurize, Clairia Faculté des Sciences de l'Environnement, Université Polytechnique de Gitega, Gitega, Burundi
Michellier, Caroline Department of Earth Sciences, Royal Museum for Central Africa, Tervuren, Belgium
Stanley, Thomas Hydrological Sciences Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland
Kervyn, Francois Department of Earth Sciences, Royal Museum for Central Africa, Tervuren, Belgium
Kervyn, Matthieu Department of Geography, Earth System Science, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
Demoulin, Alain Department of Geography, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium
Dewitte, Olivier Department of Earth Sciences, Royal Museum for Central Africa, Tervuren, Belgium

2018-10-2

Published in:

Journal of Hydrometeorology. - American Meteorological Society. - 2018, vol. 19, no. 9, p. 1507-1528

Atmospheric Science

English Abstract
Accurate precipitation data are fundamental for understanding and mitigating the disastrous effects of many natural hazards in mountainous areas. Floods and landslides, in particular, are potentially deadly events that can be mitigated with advanced warning, but accurate forecasts require timely estimation of precipitation, which is problematic in regions such as tropical Africa with limited gauge measurements. Satellite rainfall estimates (SREs) are of great value in such areas, but rigorous validation is required to identify the uncertainties linked to SREs for hazard applications. This paper presents results of an unprecedented record of gauge data in the western branch of the East African Rift, with temporal resolutions ranging from 30 min to 24 h and records from 1998 to 2018. These data were used to validate the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Multisatellite Precipitation Analysis (TMPA) research version and near-real-time products for 3-hourly, daily, and monthly rainfall accumulations, over multiple spatial scales. Results indicate that there are at least two factors that led to the underestimation of TMPA at the regional level: complex topography and high rainfall intensities. The TMPA near-real-time product shows overall stronger rainfall underestimations but lower absolute errors and a better performance at higher rainfall intensities compared to the research version. We found area-averaged TMPA rainfall estimates relatively more suitable in order to move toward regional hazard assessment, compared to data from scarcely distributed gauges with limited representativeness in the context of high rainfall variability.

Language

English

Open access status

green

Identifiers

DOI 10.1175/jhm-d-18-0103.1
ISSN 1525-755X

Persistent URL

https://sonar.ch/global/documents/113069

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