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GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS, VOL. 27, NO. 22, PAGES 3683–3686, 2000

A Study of the 1999 Monsoon Rainfall in a Mountainous Region in Central Nepal Using TRMM Products and Rain Gauge Observations.

A. P. Barros

Harvard, University, Cambridge, Massachusetts


M. Joshi

Harvard, University, Cambridge, Massachusetts


J. Putkonen

University of Washington, Seattle, Washington


D. W. Burbank

Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania


Abstract

Raingauge data from the 1999 monsoon were compared with precipitation derived from the precipitation radar (PR) and the microwave imager instruments on board the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite. The raingauges are part of a new hydrometeorological network installed in the Marsyandi river basin, which extends from the edge of the Tibetan Plateau to the Gangetic basin. TRMM-derived precipitation showed better detection of rain at low altitude stations as compared with high elevation stations, with good scores for the PR product for rain rates > 0.5 mm/hr. The 3D PR rain rates suggest strong interaction between mesoscale convective systems and steep terrain at elevations of 1-2 km, which is consistent with the very high rainfall measured at those locations. Analysis of the raingauge data shows that even at altitudes as high as 4,000 m the cumulative monsoon rainfall is comparable to the highest amount recorded in the Indian subcontinent.

Received 19 May 2000; accepted 16 August 2000.

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Citation: Barros, A. P., M. Joshi, J. Putkonen, and D. W. Burbank (2000), A Study of the 1999 Monsoon Rainfall in a Mountainous Region in Central Nepal Using TRMM Products and Rain Gauge Observations., Geophys. Res. Lett., 27(22), 3683–3686.