PRECIPITATION CLIMATOLOGIES

The Hydrology Data Support Team at the Goddard DAAC maintains archives of various climatologies of global monthly precipitation data:

Arkin & Janowiak: IR-Based Monthly Rainfall for the GPCP

Temporal Coverage:	Monthly mean from January 1986 to December 1995
Spatial Coverage:	2.5° latitude x 2.5° longitude, global (40N-40S)
Distribution Methods:	(1) Anonymous FTP
Number of Files:	1 file
Volume:	4.4 MB
Documentation:	Arkin & Janowiak: IR-Based Monthly Rainfall
File Type:	ASCII
File Name:	gpi_mth_sat-merged_mmday_asc_0186-1295

Chang SSM/I Derived Monthly Rain Indices for the GPCP

Temporal Coverage:	Monthly means from July 1987 to December 1995
Spatial Coverage:	5.0° latitude x 5.0° longitude, global Ocean (50N-50S)
Distribution Methods:	(1) Anonymous FTP
Number of Files:	1 file
Volume:	1.2 MB
Documentation:	Chang SSM/I Derived Monthly Rain Indices
File Type:	ASCII
File Name:	GPCP_SSMI_1295_5.0_v23

GPCC Rain Gauge Analysis for the GPCP

Temporal Coverage:	Monthly means from January 1986 to December 1996
Spatial Coverage:	2.5° latitude x 2.5° longitude, global (90N-90S)
Distribution Methods:	(1) Anonymous FTP
Number of Files:	1 file per year
Volume:	3.1 MB per year
Documentation:	GPCC Rain Gauge Analysis for the GPCP
File Type:	ASCII

GPCP Version 2 Combined Precipitation (Satellite-Gauge) Data Set

Temporal Coverage:	Monthly means from January 1979 to April 2005
Spatial Coverage:	2.5° latitude x 2.5° longitude, global (90N-90S)
Distribution Methods:	(1) Anonymous FTP
Number of Files:	2 files per year (updated throughout the course of a year as more recent months are processed)
Volume:	1 MB per year
Documentation:	GPCP Version 2 Combined Precipitation Data Set
File Type:	Binary with ASCII header

Jaeger Global Monthly Mean Precipitation (Rain Gauge)

Temporal Coverage:	Monthly means from January 1931 to December 1965
	(1931-60 Land; 1955-65 Ocean)
Spatial Coverage:	2.5° latitude x 5.0° longitude, global (90N - 90S)
Distribution Methods:	(1) Anonymous FTP
Number of Files:	1 file
Volume:	0.125 MB (compression factor ~ 1/8)
Documentation:	Jaeger Global Monthly Mean Precipitation
File Type:	ASCII
File Name:	jaeger.dat.Z

Legates Surface & Ship Observations of Precipitation (Rain Gauge)

Temporal Coverage:	Monthly means from January 1920 to December 1980
Spatial Coverage:	0.5° latitude x 0.5° longitude, global (90N-90S)
Distribution Methods:	(1) Anonymous FTP
Number of Files:	1 file
Volume:	5.4 MB (compression factor ~1/4)
Documentation:	Legates Surface & Ship Observations of Precipitation
File Type:	ASCII
File Name:	legates.cor.Z