Evaluation of satellite rainfall estimates using PERSIANN-CDR and TRMM over three critical cells in Jordan

Abstract

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Effective management of water resources is heavily dependent on accurate knowledge of rainfall patterns. Satellite rainfall estimates (SREs) have become increasingly popular due to their ability to provide spatial rainfall data. However, the accuracy of SREs is limited by a variety of factors including a lack of observations, inadequate evaluation techniques, and the use of short evaluation durations. To improve our understanding of SREs, this study evaluated the long-term performance of Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and PERSIANN-CDR by analyzing their spatiotemporal patterns. Daily, monthly, seasonal, and annual precipitation estimates were evaluated using statistical measures and data from 71 rain gauges across three critical cells in Jordan from 2000 to 2013. The results showed that while both SREs had low accuracy on a daily scale, TRMM 3B43 performed better than PERSIANN-CDR at the monthly level. Additionally, TRMM 3B43 exhibited superior performance during the heavy rainy season, whereas PERSIANN-CDR showed better results during other seasons. In annual studies, TRMM 3B43 was found to be more accurate than PERSIANN-CDR for the north and south cells, while PERSIANN-CDR had a higher correlation coefficient for the middle cell. These findings can contribute to the development of more reliable and accurate SREs, thereby improving water resource management studies.