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A Volume-to-Point Approach of QPE with Radar Data
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  • Ting-Shuo Yo,
  • Shih-Hao Su,
  • Jung-Lien Chu,
  • Chiao-Wei Chang,
  • Hung-Chi Kuo
Ting-Shuo Yo
National Taiwan University

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Shih-Hao Su
Chinese Culture University
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Jung-Lien Chu
National Science and Technology Center for Disaster Reduction
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Chiao-Wei Chang
Chinese Culture University
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Hung-Chi Kuo
National Taiwan University
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Abstract

In this study, we proposed a volume-to-point framework for quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) based on the QPESUMS (Quantitative Precipitation Estimation and Segregation Using Multiple Sensor) Mosaic Radar dataset. With a data volume consisting of the time series of gridded radar reflectivities over the Taiwan area, we used machine learning algorithms to establish a statistical model for QPE in weather stations. The model extracts spatial and temporal features from the input data volume and then associates these features with the location-specific precipitations. In contrast to QPE methods based on the Z-R relation, we leverage the machine learning algorithms to automatically detect the evolution and movement of weather systems and associate these patterns to a location with specific topographic attributes. Specifically, we evaluated this framework with the hourly precipitation data of 45 weather stations in Taipei during 2013 ~ 2016. In comparison to the operational QPE scheme used by the Central Weather Bureau (CWB), the volume-to-point framework performed comparably well in general cases and excelled in detecting heavy-rainfall events. By using the current results as the reference benchmark, the proposed method can integrate the heterogeneous data sources and potentially improve the QPF in extreme precipitation scenarios.