Journal article
Effect of Precipitation Sampling Error on Flash Flood Monitoring and Prediction: Anticipating Operational Rapid-Update Polarimetric Weather Radars
Journal of hydrometeorology, Vol.22(7), pp.1913-1929
07/01/2021
DOI: 10.1175/JHM-D-19-0286.1
Abstract
Quantitative precipitation estimates (QPE) at high spatiotemporal resolution are essential for flash flood forecasting, especially in urban environments and headwater areas. An accurate quantification of precipitation is directly related to the temporal and spatial sampling of the precipitation system. The advent of phased array radar (PAR) technology, a potential next-generation weather radar, can provide updates that are at least 4-5 times faster than the conventional WSR-88D scanning rate. In this study, data collected by the Norman, Oklahoma (KOUN), WSR-88D radar with -1-min temporal resolution are used as an approximation of data that a future PAR system could provide to force the Ensemble Framework for Flash Flood Forecasting (EF5) hydrologic model. To assess the effect of errors resulting from temporal and spatial sampling of precipitation on flash flood warnings, KOUN precipitation data (1-km/1-min resolution) are used to generate precipitation products at other spatial/temporal resolutions commonly used in hydrologic models, such as those provided by conventional WSR-88D radar (1 km/5 min), space-based observations (10-km/30-min), and hourly rainfall products (1 km/60 min). The effect of precipitation sampling errors on flash flood warnings are then examined and quantified by using discharge simulated from KOUN (1 km/1 min) as truth to assess simulations conducted using other generated coarser spatial/temporal resolutions of other precipitation products. Our results show that 1) observations with coarse spatial and temporal sampling can cause large errors in quantification of the amount, intensity, and distribution of precipitation; 2) time series of precipitation products show that QPE peak values decrease as the temporal resolution gets coarser; and 3) the effect of precipitation sampling error on flash flood forecasting is large in headwater areas and decrease quickly as drainage area increases.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Effect of Precipitation Sampling Error on Flash Flood Monitoring and Prediction: Anticipating Operational Rapid-Update Polarimetric Weather Radars
- Creators
- Yixin Wen - Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological StudiesTerry Schuur - Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological StudiesHumberto Vergara - Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological StudiesCharles Kuster - Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Journal of hydrometeorology, Vol.22(7), pp.1913-1929
- Publisher
- Amer Meteorological Soc
- DOI
- 10.1175/JHM-D-19-0286.1
- ISSN
- 1525-755X
- eISSN
- 1525-7541
- Number of pages
- 17
- Grant note
- U.S. Department of Commerce NA16OAR4320115 / NOAA/Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research under NOAA-University of Oklahoma; National Oceanic Atmospheric Admin (NOAA) - USA Spectrum Efficient National Surveillance Radar (SENSR) program
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 07/01/2021
- Academic Unit
- Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Record Identifier
- 9984446275402771
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