High‐frequency estimation of rainfall from thunderstorms via satellite infrared and a long‐range lightning network in Europe

A rain retrieval technique called Omvrios, that combines geostationary satellite infrared (IR) observations and cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning information retrieved from a long-range lightning detection network (Zeus) in Europe, is presented. Cloud systems are defined in the IR temperature array by the 255 K isotherm. Bulk parametrizations that relate cloud top IR temperature, morphological characteristics and CG lightning information (location and flash rate) are used to discriminate rainy from non-rainy cloud systems, and to evaluate the convective and stratiform rain areas and associated area-averaged rain rates of the rainy systems. The technique's parameters were calibrated using collocated and instantaneous rain fields derived from Special Sensor Micro-wave/Imager passive microwave data. Retrieved rain estimates are aggregated to 0.1° grid resolution and 6 h temporal accumulation. The technique is validated during the warm season from May to August 2002, based on independent 6 h rain accumulation measurements from a network of 700 rain-gauges located across Europe. Statistical analysis shows high correlation with gauge rainfall data (0.88) and low overall systematic difference (∼5%). Besides direct validation against rain-gauge data, Omvrios has been compared to existing passive microwave-calibrated IR rain-retrieval techniques. It is shown that lightning information can lead to a significant (25–40%) reduction in the random error of IR retrievals and to an increase of nearly 0.3 in correlation with gauges. In terms of systematic differences (retrieval bias) Omvrios is shown to be consistent, as conditional and unconditional biases are nearly equal (within 5%), while for the other IR rain retrievals the variation between conditional and unconditional biases was significant (34–75%). Copyright © 2004 Royal Meteorological Society

[1]  T. N. Krishnamurti,et al.  The status of the tropical rainfall measuring mission (TRMM) after two years in orbit , 2000 .

[2]  H. R. Byers.  Elements of Cloud Physics , 1965 .

[3]  H. Sauvageot,et al.  Area-average rainfall and lightning activity , 1997 .

[4]  M. Baker,et al.  Lightning flash rate and type in convective storms , 1998 .

[5]  Morales Rodriguez,et al.  Continuous thunderstorm monitoring: Retrieval of precipitation parameters from lightning observations , 2001 .

[6]  J. Janowiak,et al.  A Real–Time Global Half–Hourly Pixel–Resolution Infrared Dataset and Its Applications , 2001 .

[7]  Robert F. Adler,et al.  A Proposed Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Satellite , 1988 .

[8]  Emmanouil N. Anagnostou,et al.  Assessment of the Use of Lightning Information in Satellite Infrared Rainfall Estimation , 2000 .

[9]  U. Schneider,et al.  Global precipitation estimates based on a technique for combining satellite-based estimates, rain gauge analysis, and NWP model precipitation information , 1995 .

[10]  Ralph Ferraro,et al.  The Development of SSM/I Rain-Rate Retrieval Algorithms Using Ground-Based Radar Measurements , 1995 .

[11]  Phillip A. Arkin,et al.  The Relationship between Fractional Coverage of High Cloud and Rainfall Accumulations during GATE over the B-Scale Array , 1979 .

[12]  S. Sorooshian,et al.  Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information Using Artificial Neural Networks , 1997 .

[13]  Kuolin Hsu,et al.  Estimation of physical variables from multichannel remotely sensed imagery using a neural network: Application to rainfall estimation , 1999 .

[14]  M. Todd,et al.  A Combined Satellite Infrared and Passive Microwave Technique for Estimation of Small-Scale Rainfall , 1999 .

[15]  Robert F. Adler,et al.  Estimation of Monthly Rainfall over Japan and Surrounding Waters from a Combination of Low-Orbit Microwave and Geosynchronous IR Data , 1993 .

[16]  K. Georgakakos,et al.  On the parametric and NEXRAD-radar sensitivities of a distributed hydrologic model suitable for operational use , 2001 .

[17]  A. C. Lee,et al.  An experimental study of the remote location of lightning flashes using a VLF arrival time difference technique , 1986 .

[18]  Jose Maliekal,et al.  The Uncertainty of Simple Spatial Averages Using Rain Gauge Networks , 1995 .

[19]  Robert F. Adler,et al.  A Satellite Infrared Technique to Estimate Tropical Convective and Stratiform Rainfall , 1988 .

[20]  Konstantine P. Georgakakos,et al.  Impacts of climate variability on the operational forecast and management of the Upper Des Moines River Basin , 1998 .

[21]  E. Zipser.  Deep Cumulonimbus Cloud Systems in the Tropics with and without Lightning , 1994 .

[22]  Donald R. MacGorman,et al.  Cloud-to-Ground Lightning: Climatological Characteristics and Relationships to Model Fields, Radar Observations, and Severe Local Storms , 1989 .

[23]  John M. Livingston,et al.  Electric fields produced by Florida thunderstorms , 1978 .

[24]  Richard E. Orville,et al.  The relationship between lightning type and convective state of thunderclouds , 1989 .

[25]  S. Goodman.  Predicting thunderstorm evolution using ground-based lightning detection networks , 1990 .

[26]  Johannes Schmetz,et al.  Precipitation estimations from geostationary orbit and prospects for METEOSAT Second Generation , 2001 .

[27]  J. Susskind,et al.  Global Precipitation at One-Degree Daily Resolution from Multisatellite Observations , 2001 .

[28]  S. Goodman,et al.  Convective Tendency Images Derived from a Combination of Lightning and Satellite Data , 1988 .

[29]  V. M. Karyampudi,et al.  The Effect of Assimilating Rain Rates Derived from Satellites and Lightning on Forecasts of the 1993 Superstorm , 1999 .

[30]  Erich Franz Stocker,et al.  Analysis of TRMM 3-Hourly Multi-Satellite Precipitation Estimates Computed in Both Real and Post-Real Time , 2002 .

[31]  Emmanouil N. Anagnostou,et al.  Error analysis for a long‐range lightning monitoring network of ground‐based receivers in Europe , 2003 .

[32]  J. Smith,et al.  Estimation of Convective Rainfall from Lightning Observations , 1998 .

[33]  E. Anagnostou,et al.  Overland Precipitation Estimation from TRMM Passive Microwave Observations , 2001 .

[34]  Emmanouil N. Anagnostou,et al.  Extending the Capabilities of High-Frequency Rainfall Estimation from Geostationary-Based Satellite Infrared via a Network of Long-Range Lightning Observations , 2003 .