The performance of a high‐resolution satellite‐derived precipitation product over the topographically complex landscape of Eswatini

Abstract The study evaluated the use of Climate Hazard Group InfraRed Precipitation with Stations (CHIRPS) data for monitoring rainfall data in Eswatini. Various statistical metrics such as Bias, correlation coefficient (r), mean absolute error (MAE) and root mean square error (RMSE) were used to ev...

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Main Authors: Wisdom M. D. Dlamini, Samkele S. Tfwala
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2025-01-01
Series:Geoscience Data Journal
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1002/gdj3.278
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author Wisdom M. D. Dlamini
Samkele S. Tfwala
author_facet Wisdom M. D. Dlamini
Samkele S. Tfwala
author_sort Wisdom M. D. Dlamini
collection DOAJ
description Abstract The study evaluated the use of Climate Hazard Group InfraRed Precipitation with Stations (CHIRPS) data for monitoring rainfall data in Eswatini. Various statistical metrics such as Bias, correlation coefficient (r), mean absolute error (MAE) and root mean square error (RMSE) were used to evaluate the CHIRPS 2.0 data against 14 rain gauge observations acquired during 1981–2020. CHIRPS 2.0 rainfall agrees well with rain gauge precipitation at monthly (r = 0.73, Bias = 1.02, RMSE = 50.44 and MAD = 31.44), seasonal (r = 0.77, Bias = 1.01, RMSE = 36.99 and MAD = 24.15) and annual scales (r = 0.65, Bias = 2.46, RMSE = 500.78 and MAD = 468.06). Moreover, areas characterized by complex topography and land use, and areas in transition zones (to a different agroecological zone) had generally poor correlations. Nonetheless, CHIRPS 2.0 captures well the spatial distribution of rainfall in the different agroecological zones of Eswatini, even in areas with no rain gauge data. In conclusion, CHIRPS 2.0 can be a very valuable tool in filling gaps created by poor spatial coverage of ground‐based rain gauges, especially in the developing world where this is often the case.
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spelling doaj-art-4b621ab73e0e47dfba5ec47a1b79dbf52025-01-27T08:26:33ZengWileyGeoscience Data Journal2049-60602025-01-01121n/an/a10.1002/gdj3.278The performance of a high‐resolution satellite‐derived precipitation product over the topographically complex landscape of EswatiniWisdom M. D. Dlamini0Samkele S. Tfwala1Department of Geography, Environmental Science and Planning University of Eswatini Kwaluseni EswatiniDepartment of Geography, Environmental Science and Planning University of Eswatini Kwaluseni EswatiniAbstract The study evaluated the use of Climate Hazard Group InfraRed Precipitation with Stations (CHIRPS) data for monitoring rainfall data in Eswatini. Various statistical metrics such as Bias, correlation coefficient (r), mean absolute error (MAE) and root mean square error (RMSE) were used to evaluate the CHIRPS 2.0 data against 14 rain gauge observations acquired during 1981–2020. CHIRPS 2.0 rainfall agrees well with rain gauge precipitation at monthly (r = 0.73, Bias = 1.02, RMSE = 50.44 and MAD = 31.44), seasonal (r = 0.77, Bias = 1.01, RMSE = 36.99 and MAD = 24.15) and annual scales (r = 0.65, Bias = 2.46, RMSE = 500.78 and MAD = 468.06). Moreover, areas characterized by complex topography and land use, and areas in transition zones (to a different agroecological zone) had generally poor correlations. Nonetheless, CHIRPS 2.0 captures well the spatial distribution of rainfall in the different agroecological zones of Eswatini, even in areas with no rain gauge data. In conclusion, CHIRPS 2.0 can be a very valuable tool in filling gaps created by poor spatial coverage of ground‐based rain gauges, especially in the developing world where this is often the case.https://doi.org/10.1002/gdj3.278CHIRPSEswatiniprecipitationsatellite product
spellingShingle Wisdom M. D. Dlamini
Samkele S. Tfwala
The performance of a high‐resolution satellite‐derived precipitation product over the topographically complex landscape of Eswatini
Geoscience Data Journal
CHIRPS
Eswatini
precipitation
satellite product
title The performance of a high‐resolution satellite‐derived precipitation product over the topographically complex landscape of Eswatini
title_full The performance of a high‐resolution satellite‐derived precipitation product over the topographically complex landscape of Eswatini
title_fullStr The performance of a high‐resolution satellite‐derived precipitation product over the topographically complex landscape of Eswatini
title_full_unstemmed The performance of a high‐resolution satellite‐derived precipitation product over the topographically complex landscape of Eswatini
title_short The performance of a high‐resolution satellite‐derived precipitation product over the topographically complex landscape of Eswatini
title_sort performance of a high resolution satellite derived precipitation product over the topographically complex landscape of eswatini
topic CHIRPS
Eswatini
precipitation
satellite product
url https://doi.org/10.1002/gdj3.278
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