WDT meteorologists Dr. Richard Carpenter, Dr. Chris Porter, and Noah Lock recently developed a research project for undergraduate students at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (USAO), located in Chickasha, Oklahoma. The project involves the estimation of precipitation using a variety of observational platforms: rain gauge, radar, and satellite. It’s a difficult problem because, while each of the sources of information are generally quite accurate (particularly so for gauges and radar), they suffer from various limitations. For instance, gauges will not report accurately in freezing conditions, while radar beams can be blocked by terrain or significantly overshoot surface locations in between radars.
The figure below shows radar-based estimates (in millimeters) on a 250-m grid overlaid with rain gauge measurements (small circles). The data have been provided to the students, who will use it to research data analysis and error minimization techniques.