The global distribution of largest, deepest, and most intense precipitation systems

Abstract

By grouping the contiguous precipitating area detected by the precipitation radar on board the Global Precipitation Mission (GPM) core satellite, snapshots of precipitation systems are summarized as precipitation features (PFs), and their properties are cataloged from 1year GPM observations. These PFs are categorized by their area and depth and convective intensity based on the 20 and 40dBZ radar echo tops, respectively. The largest PFs are found mainly over ocean at the mid-high latitudes, especially over southern ocean. The deepest PFs are mainly over tropical land, the West Pacific Warm Pool, and the Great Plains of the United States and Argentina. The most convectively intense PFs are dominant over land regions, including midlatitude and high latitude. The zonal precipitation contribution from extremely large precipitation systems is greater in midlatitude and high latitude than in the tropics. These extreme precipitation systems are rare but contribute significantly to the global precipitation. It is important to include their impacts in global climate models to correctly describe the global water cycle. Key Points Largest, deepest, and strongest storms are shown with spaceborne radar Extreme events are rare but important in global water cycle