Contrasting the co-variability of daytime cloud and precipitation over tropical land and ocean.

ABSTRACT: The co-variability of cloud and precipitation in the extended tropics (35°N-35°S) is investigated using contemporaneous data sets for a 13-year period. The goal is to quantify potential relationships between cloud type fractions and precipitation events of particular strength. Particular attention is paid to whether the relationships exhibit different characteristics over tropical land and ocean. A primary analysis metric is the correlation coefficient between fractions of individual cloud types and frequencies within precipitation histogram bins that have been matched in time and space. The cloud type fractions are derived from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) joint histograms of cloud top pressure and cloud optical thickness in 1°grid cells, and the precipitation fre

SUBMITTER: Jin D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7356930 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature