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Hydrological evaluation of satellite and reanalysis precipitation products in the glacier-fed river basin (Gilgit)

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Abstract

Weather conditions and flow are frequently analyzed using the multisource precipitation products, where rain gauge network is not available or dispersed. This study has been designed to evaluate the precipitation and flow using rain gauges, satellite, and reanalysis data (TRMM 3B42RT v-7 and ERA-Interim) over Gilgit (glacier fed), a river basin of northern Pakistan. Statistical matrices, such as Bias, Mean Absolute Error (MAE), Root Mean Square Error (RMSE), coefficient of determination (R2), and percentage (%) difference, were used to report the discrepancies in the precipitation and flow. Moreover, the spatial distribution, rain occurrence, and volume precipitation were used for further analysis. However, both sources showed ability to capture the pattern well. In the rain occurrence, light precipitation (< 1 mm/h) contributes more than 60% (October–March) and heavy precipitation (> 10 mm/h) shares more than 40% in total volume (April–September). Overall, the TRMM outperforms for precipitation estimation in the catchment. Moreover, the findings of the study would be helpful in controlling flood-causing disaster in this particular area and provide important information for sustainable development and to overcome food security and energy issues in the country. These findings indicate the potential of satellite and reanalysis data as alternative to rain gauge in many applications where data are not available or very limited.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by The National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant 41675029 and 71850410541; The Natural Science Foundation of the Higher Education Institutions of Jiangsu Province, China under Grant 16KJB170005; The National Basic Research Program (973) of China under Grant 2013CB430102; The Startup Foundation for Talents in Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology under Grant 2015r055; and the Open Research Funding Program of KLGIS under Grant KLGIS2015A01 and KLGIS2015A04. The USGS, ERA-Interim, TRMM Rain gauge data used in this study were downloaded/collected from respective sources. The authors wish to extend their sincere gratitude to the Pakistan Meteorology Department and Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) Pakistan and Centre of Ecology and Hydrology for using the PDM model.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Collaborative Innovation Center on Forecast and Evaluation of Meteorological Disasters, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing, 210044, China

    Mohammad Ilyas Abro, Ming Wei, Dehua Zhu, Gohar Ali & Abid Raza Shah

  2. State Key Laboratory of Severe Weather, Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China

    Ming Wei

  3. School of Business, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing, 210044, China

    Ehsan Elahi

  4. Pakistan Meteorological Department, Sector H-8/2, PO Box 44000, Islamabad, Pakistan

    Gohar Ali

  5. Institute of Physics, University of Sindh, Jamshoro, Pakistan

    Murad Ali Khaskheli

  6. School of Geographical Sciences, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing, 210044, China

    Athanase Nkunzimana

  7. Department of Geography, University of Burundi, PO Box 5142, Bujumbura, Burundi

    Athanase Nkunzimana

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  1. Mohammad Ilyas Abro
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  2. Ming Wei
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  3. Dehua Zhu
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  8. Athanase Nkunzimana
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Correspondence to Mohammad Ilyas Abro or Ehsan Elahi.

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Abro, M.I., Wei, M., Zhu, D. et al. Hydrological evaluation of satellite and reanalysis precipitation products in the glacier-fed river basin (Gilgit). Arab J Geosci 13, 631 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-020-05621-2

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