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Both spatial and temporal information sources contribute to the predictability of precipitation occurrence at a given location. These sources, and the level of predictability they provide, are relevant to forecasting and understanding precipitation processes at different time scales. We use information theory-based measures to construct connected “chains of influence” of spatial extents and timescales of precipitation occurrence predictability across the continental U.S, based on gridded daily precipitation data. These regions can also be thought of as “footprints” or regions where precipitation states tend to be most synchronized. We compute these chains of precipitation influence for grid cells in the continental US, and study metrics regarding their lengths, extents, and curvature for different seasons. We find distinct geographic and seasonal patterns, particularly longer chain lengths during the summer that are indicative of larger spatial extents for storms. While synchronous, or instantaneous, relationships are strongest for grid cells in the same region, lagged relationships arise as chains reach areas farther from the original cell. While this study focuses on precipitation occurrence predictability given only information about precipitation, it could be extended to study spatial and temporal properties of other driving factors.
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“It’s Raining Bits”: Patterns in Directional Precipitation Persistence across the United States
Abstract The spatial and temporal ordering of precipitation occurrence impacts ecosystems, streamflow, and water availability. For example, both large-scale climate patterns and local landscapes drive weather events, and the typical speeds and directions of these events moving across a basin dictate the timing of flows at its outlet. We address the predictability of precipitation occurrence at a given location, based on the knowledge of past precipitation at surrounding locations. We identify “dominant directions of precipitation influence” across the continental United States based on a gridded daily dataset. Specifically, we apply information theory–based measures that characterize dominant directions and strengths of spatial and temporal precipitation dependencies. On a national average, this dominant direction agrees with the prevalent direction of weather movement from west to east across the country, but regional differences reflect topographic divides, precipitation gradients, and different climatic drivers of precipitation. Trends in these information relationships and their correlations with climate indices over the past 70 years also show seasonal and spatial divides. This study expands upon a framework of information-based predictability to answer questions about spatial connectivity in addition to temporal persistence. The methods presented here are generally useful to understand many aspects of weather and climate variability.
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- PAR ID:
- 10225968
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Journal of Hydrometeorology
- Volume:
- 21
- Issue:
- 12
- ISSN:
- 1525-755X
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 2907 to 2921
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM-D-20-0134.1
