Kwame Nkrumah University of

Science & Technology, Kumasi, Ghana

CE 355
HYDROLOGY
Prof. Kwaku Amaning Adjei
&
Dr. Charles Gyamfi
Dept. of Civil Engineering
KNUST

1
 Chapter 2

PRECIPITATION

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 Chapter 2: Learning Outcomes
At the end of this lecture, you should be able to:
• List the types of precipitation
• Define and Explain the some characteristics of
precipitation
• Explain the factors that affect precipitation
• Describe how rainfall is measured and the types of
instruments
• Estimate areal rainfall from point measurements using
different methods
• Compute missing rainfall values and test for consistency
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 PRECIPITATION
• Precipitation denotes all forms of water that reach the
earth from the atmosphere.
• It is also the process by which water is removed from the
atmosphere to the earth. It is the supply of water, to the
oceans and the continents derived from the atmosphere.
The release of moisture in the atmosphere is varied.
• The usual forms are rainfall, snowfall, hail, frost, and dew.

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 Forms of Precipitation
Liquid Precipitation ( in most cases was frozen inside the
cloud):
• Rain: Drops of water
• Drizzle: Drops of water that are .5mm in diameter
• Dew: Condensation of water vapor on a cool surface.
Solid Precipitation (temperature below freezing, except
hail)
• Snow Grains: Small crystals of ice that are similar to a drizzle.
• Snowflakes: Agglomeration of grains, the equivalent of rain.
• Sleet: Frozen rain
• Hail: Spherical lumps of ice composed on concentric layers.
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 Precipitation Characteristics
• Intensity = rate per unit time (e.g., mm/h)
• Duration = length of time over which
precipitation occurs
• Amount = average intensity * duration
e.g., 1.5 mm/h * 6 h = 9 mm
• Distribution – relative occurrence of precipitation
in space or time (e.g, seasonal)

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 Precipitation Formation
The conditions for precipitation to take place may be
summarized stepwise as follows:
1. Supply of moisture
2. A means of lifting this air higher
3. Condensation
4. Condensation nuclei
5. Growth of the small droplets by collision and
coalescence.

*Coalescence is the process by which two or more droplets, bubbles or particles merge
during contact to form a single daughter droplet, bubble or particle.

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 Factors Affecting Precipitation
The precipitation at a place and its form depend upon a number of
meteorological and other factors, such as
• Latitude – precipitation decreases with increasing latitude because
temperature reduces atmospheric moisture.
• Elevation – due to orographic cooling.
• Distance from moisture source. Precipitation is usually lower at greater
distances from the ocean.
• Prevailing wind direction – if it is into the sea.
• Relation to mountain ranges – windward sides typically cloudy & rainy
with leeward side typically dry and sunny.
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• Relative temperatures of land and bordering oceans.
 Factors affecting Precipitation
The precipitation at a place and its form depend upon a
number of meteorological and other factors, such as
• Wind
• Temperature
• humidity and pressure in the area enclosing the clouds and
• the ground surface at the given place.

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 Measurement of Rainfall – (Precipitation)

Non - Recording Symons Gauge

Rain Gauge

Weighing Bucket

Recording Tipping Bucket

Radar and Satellite

Float Type
Measurements

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 Requirements for gauge construction

• The rim of the collector should have a sharp

edge.
• The area of the aperture should be known
with an accuracy of 0.5 %.
• Design is such that rain is prevented from
splashing in or out.
• The reservoir should be constructed so as to
avoid evaporation.
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 Non-Recording Rainguages

• Often have a funnel opening into a

cylinder gauge.
• Come in a variety of shapes and sizes
• Calculate the rainfall (in mm) by
dividing the volume of water
collected by the area of the opening
of the cup. (The gauge marking often
accounts for this).

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 Non-Recording Rainguages
• Overflow can, Inner tube ,Funnel ,Graduated stick/rod
Advantages
• Initial cost is low
• Usually, recording cannot be interrupted due to mechanical
/ electrical defect.
• Disadvantages
The non-recording gauge gives only the total depth of rainfall
(for the previous 24 hours.) and does not give the intensity and
duration of rainfall during different time intervals of the day.

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 Recording Gauges - Types
Recording gauges are of three different types:
• the weighing type,
• the tilting bucket type
• the float type.

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 Recording Gauges - Advantages
• Automatic recording obviates the necessity of an
attendant.
• It indicates intensity of rainfall at any time as well as the
total rainfall while the non-recording gauge gives only the
total rainfall.
• It is the only means to get rainfall data from inaccessible
places in hilly areas.
• Element of human error is eliminated.
• Capacity of the gauge is big.
• It measures the time period also.
• It can operate over extended periods without attention.
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 Recording Gauges - Disadvantages
• High initial cost
• Recording may be interrupted due to mechanical or
electrical defects.
• For the tipping bucket intermittent tipping may cause loss
of water.

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 Errors In Precipitation Measurement By Rain Gauges

Instrumental errors

Errors in scale reading

Dent in receivers

Dent in measuring cylinders

About 0.25mm of water is initially required to wet the surface of gauge

Rain gauges splash from collector

Non verticality of measuring cylinders (10°in in the rain gauges

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 Errors In Precipitation Measurement By Rain Gauges

Frictional effects

Non verticality of measuring cylinders (10° inclination gives 1.5% less

precipitation)

Loss of water by evaporation

Leakage in measuring cylinder

Wind speed reduces measured amount of rain in the rain gauges

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 Radar and Satellite Measurements
• Radar Measurements: A weather radar is a type of radar used to
locate precipitation, calculate its motion, estimate its type (rain,
snow, hail, etc.), and forecast its future position and intensity.
Weather radars are mostly Doppler radars, capable of detecting the
motion of rain droplets in addition to intensity of the precipitation.
Both types of data can be analyzed to determine the structure of
storms and their potential to cause severe weather.
• Satellite Measurements : A weather satellite is a type of satellite that
is primarily used to monitor the weather and climate of the Earth.

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 Measurements of Rain - Definitions
• Hyetograph – A plot showing the variation of rainfall
intensity (mm/hr) with time
• Isohyet - A plot of contours of equal precipitation.
• Rainfall mass curve – Is a graph showing the cumulative
depth of rainfall against time, plotted in chronological
order.

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 Recording Gauges - Concepts
• The rainfall is usually recorded cumulatively (mass curve)
from which the hyetograph (a plot of the rainfall with
time) is easily derived

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 Measurements of Rain
Point Measurements
• Data from a single nearby rain gauge are often sufficiently
representative to allow their use in the design of small
projects.
Areal Measurements
• Several precipitation gauges are employed over very large
catchments. Weighted average of these gauge
measurements are used to estimate the precipitation.

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 Variation of rainfall
A catchment of a river is shown with four rain gauges, for
which an assumed recorded value of rainfall depth have been
shown in the table. It is on the basis of these discrete
measurements of rainfall that an estimation of the average
amount of rainfall that has probably fallen over a catchment
has to be made. Three methods are commonly used, which are
discussed in the following section.

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 Average rainfall depth
The time of rainfall record can vary and may typically range
from 1 minute to 1 day for non – recording gauges,
Recording gauges, on the other hand, continuously record the
rainfall and may do so from 1 day 1 week, depending on the
make of instrument. For any time duration, the average
depth of rainfall falling over a catchment can be found by the
following three methods.
• The Arithmetic Mean Method
• The Thiessen Polygon Method
• The Isohyetal Method

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 Areal Measurements - Arithmetic mean

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 Areal Measurements - Thiessen method

•Locate all rainfall stations on a

base map and record the rainfall
amount.
• Connect each station by straight
lines with the several nearest
stations to form a series of
triangles.
•Erect perpendicular bisectors on
each of these lines and extend
them to the intersect with other
bisectors, thus forming a series
of irregular polygons
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 Areal Measurements - Thiessen method

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 Average rainfall depth

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 Average rainfall depth
• These areas are found out using a method consisting of the following
three steps:
• 1. Joining the rain gauge station locations by straight lines to form
• triangles
• 2. Bisecting the edges of the triangles to form the so-called “Thiessen
polygons”
• 3. Calculate the area enclosed around each rain gauge station
• bounded by the polygon edges (and the catchment boundary,
• wherever appropriate) to find the area of influence corresponding to
• the rain gauge.
• For the given example, the “weighted” average rainfall over the
catchment is determined as

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 Average rainfall depth
• The Isohyetal method
• This is considered as one of the most accurate methods, but it is
dependent on the skill and experience of the analyst. The method
requires the plotting of isohyets as shown in the figure and calculating
the areas enclosed either between the isohyets or between an isohyet
and the catchment boundary.

• The areas may be measured with a planimeter if the catchment map

is drawn to a scale.

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 Areal Measurements - Isoheyetal method

• The most basic method of representing the

spatial distribution.
This is generally the most accurate method
but is also the most laborious.

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 Areal Measurements - Isoheyetal method

•Locate all rainfall stations

on a base map and record
the rainfall amount.

•Draw isohyets (lines of

equal rainfall) by
proportioning the
distances between
adjacent gauges
according to differences in
catch.
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 Areal Measurements - Isoheyetal method

•Locate all rainfall stations

on a base map and record
the rainfall amount.

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 Estimating Missing Rainfall Data
Some precipitation stations may have short breaks in the
records because of absence of the observer or because of
instrumental failures. It is often necessary to estimate this
missing record.

There are two methods for estimation of missing data.

• Arithmetic Mean Method
• Normal Ratio Method

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 Arithmetic Mean Method
According to the arithmetic mean method the
missing precipitation 'Px' is given as:

1
Px = (P1 + P2 + ... + Pm )
m
• Using data from three surrounding gauges
should give good results

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 Normal Ratio Method
This method is used if the normal annual rainfall at the surrounding
stations differ from the normal annual rainfall of the station in
question by more than 10%. The rainfalls are weighed by the ratio of
the normal annual rainfalls.

1 æ Nx Nx Nx ö
Px = çç P1 + P2 + ... + Pm ÷÷
m è N1 N2 Nm ø
• Nx = normal (longterm) annual rainfall at station x
• Nm = normal (longterm) annual rainfall at the m surrounding stations
• Pm = storm rain at station m
A minimum of three surrounding stations are generally used in the
normal ratio method
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 Example
• The raingauge at station X did not function for a part of a
month during which a storm occurred. Using the table below
estimate the storm rainfall at station X.

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 Solution
• The annual rainfall at stations B and C varies by more than 10% of
that at station X and as such normal ratio method is applicable.

103.5 -10% 115 +10% 126.5

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 Example
• Find out the missing storm precipitation of station 'C'
given in the following table:

Station A B C D E
Storm precipitation (cm) 9.7 8.3 ---- 11.7 8.0
Normal Annual precipitation (cm) 100.3 109.5 93.5 125.7 117.5

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 Solution
• Determine first that whether arithmetic mean or normal ratio method is to be
applied.
• 10% of Nc = 93.5 x 10/100 = 9.35
• After the addition of 10% of Nc we get 93.5 + 9.35 = 102.85
• And by subtracting 10% we get a value of 84.15
• So Na, Nb, Nd or Ne values are to be checked for the range 102.85 to 84.15.
• If any value of Na, Nb, Nd or Ne lies beyond this range, then normal ratio method
would be used. It is clear from data in table above that Nb, Nd and Ne values
are out of this range so the normal ratio method is applicable
Station A B C D E
Storm precipitation (cm) 9.7 8.3 ---- 11.7 8.0
Normal Annual precipitation (cm) 100.3 109.5 93.5 125.7 117.5
-10% +10%
84.15 93.5 102.85
1 é 93.5 93.5 93.5 93.5 ù
Pc = (9.7 ) + (8.3) + (11.7 ) + (8.0 )
4 êë100.3 109.5 125.7 117.5 úû
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Pc = 7.8 cm
 Example
• Precipitation station "X" was inoperative for part of a month during
which a storm occurred. The storm totals at three surrounding
stations A, B and C were respectively 10.7, 8.9 and 12.2 cm. The
normal annual precipitation amounts at stations X, A, B and C are
respectively 97.8, 112, 93.5 and 119.9 cm. Estimate the storm
precipitation for station 'X'.

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 Solution
• Pa = 10.7 cm Na = 112 cm
• Pb = 8.90 cm Nb = 93.5 cm
• Pc = 12.2 cm Nc = 119.9 cm
• Px = ? Nx = 97.8 cm
• 10% of Nx = 97.8 x 10/100 = 9.78 cm.
• Nx - Na = 97.8 - 112 = -14.2 cm is More than + 10% of Nx
(no need of calculating Nx - Nb and Nx – Nc)

1 é 97.8 97.8 97.8 ù

Pc = ê (10.7) + (8.9) + (12.2)ú
3 ë 112 93.5 119.9 û
Pc = 9.5 cm

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 Test for Consistency of Records
If the conditions relevant to the recording of a raingauge station
have undergone a significant change during the period of
record, inconsistency would arise in the rainfall data of that
station.
Some of the common causes for inconsistency of record are:
• shifting of a raingauge station to a new location
• the neighbourhood of the station undergoing a marked
change
• change in the ecosystem due to forest fires, landslides, etc.
and
• occurrence of observational error from a certain data.

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 Double-mass curve technique
• The checking for inconsistency of a record is carried out
by the double-mass curve technique. This technique is based
on the principle that when each recorded data comes
from the same parent population, they are consistent.
– A group of n (usually 5 to 10) base stations in the
neighborhood of the problem station X is selected.
– Annual rainfall data of station X and also the average rainfall of
the group of base stations covering a long period is arranged in
order.

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 Double-mass curve technique
𝑚!
𝑃! = 𝑃"
𝑚"
Slope = mo where
Pa = adjusted precipitation
P0 =observed precipitation
ma = slope of graph to which records are
adjusted
mo slope of graph at time P0 was
Slope = ma observed

• It is apparent that the more homogeneous the base station records

are, the more accurate will be the corrected values at station X. A
change in slope is normally taken as significant only where it persists
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 10- 10-
Z Station Z Station Modified Z-
Station Station
Year Precip. Cum. Station Prec. Cum. F
Averge Cum.
(mm) (mm) (mm)
(mm) (mm)
1987 21 23 21 23 21.0 26.8
1986 25 30 46 53 25.0 51.8
1985 28 32 74 85 28.0 79.8
1984 40 44 114 129 40.0 119.8
1983 38 39 152 168 38.0 157.8
1982 35 36 187 204 35.0 192.8

=Z Prec. *0.965/1.247
1981 31 31 218 235 31.0 223.8
1980 30 26 248 261 30.0 253.8
1979 24 21 272 282 18.4 272.2
1978 20 17 292 299 15.3 287.5
1977 25 21 317 320 19.2 306.7
1976 30 25 347 345 23.0 329.7
1975 35 27 382 372 26.8 356.5
1974 39 31 421 403 29.9 386.4
1973
46 37 29 458 432 28.4
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1972 35 28 493 460 26.8 441.6
 Double-mass Curve for Station Z

600
Cumulative annual precipitation, Station Z (mm)

500 y = 1.2469x - 81.272

400
y = 0.9659x - 6.5427
300

200

100

0
0 100 200 300 400 500
47 10- stations average cumulative annual precipitation
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 Adjiusted Curve

500
Cumulative annual precipitation, Station Z (mm)

450
y = 0.9594x - 0.226
400 R² = 0.9997

350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
0 100 200 300 400 500
48 10- stations average cumulative annual precipitation (mm)
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Adjusted Linear (Adjusted)