IWM 2104: Agricultural Meteorology and

Climate Change

Topic: Measurement of Rainfall and Evaporation

Dr. Khalid Mahmud

Associate Professor
Dept. of Irrigation and Water Management
Bangladesh Agricultural University
 Measurement of Precipitation
• Precipitation is expressed in terms of the
vertical depth to which water from it would
stand on a level surface area if all the water
from it were collected on this surface.
• The amount of precipitation is measured using
a rain gauge (also called pluviometer,
ombrometer, hyetometer etc).
 Measurement of Precipitation (contd.)
Considerations in setting a rain gauge station
• The ground must be level and in the open and the
instrument must represent a horizontal catch surface
• The rain gauge must be set as near the ground as
possible to reduce wind effects
• The rain gauge must be set sufficiently high to
prevent splashing, flooding etc
• The instrument must be surrounded by an open
fenced area of at least 5.5m x 5.5m. No object must
be closer to the rain gauge than 30m or twice the
height of the obstruction
 Measurement of Precipitation (contd.)
• A rain gauge consists of a cylindrical vessel assembly
kept in the open to collect rain.
• Rainfall collected in the rain gauge is measured at
regular intervals.
• Rainfall catch is affected by the exposure conditions of
the rain gauge.
• Rain gauges may be broadly classified into 2
categories :
1. Non-recording rain gauges and
2. Recording rain gauges
 Non-recording Rain gauges
• These rain gauges just collect the rainwater but do
not record the quantity of rainfall.
• The standard non-recording gauge of USNWS has a
collector (receiver) of 20.3 cm (8 in) diameter.
• The rainfall passes from the collector discharges into
the cylindrical measuring tube inside the overflow
can.
• The measuring tube has a cross-sectional area one-
tenth that of the collector.
 Non-recording Rain gauges (contd.)
▪ Hence, for example, a 2.5 mm rainfall will fill the tube
to a depth of 25 mm.
▪ With a measuring stick rainfall can be measured to the
nearest 0.25 mm.
▪ When snow is expected, the collector and the tube are
removed and snow is collected in the outer metal
container or overflow can.
▪ It is then melted and poured into the measuring
tube, and the depth of resulting water is measured.
Non-recording or ordinary rain gauge
 Recording rain gauges
• Recording rain gauges have a mechanical
arrangement that gives a permanent automatic record
of rainfall .
• It produces a plot of cumulative rainfall vs time (mass
curve of rainfall). The slope of the plot gives the
intensity of rainfall for any given time period.
• These rain gauges are also called integrating rain
gauges since they record cumulative rainfall.
• In addition to the total amount of rainfall at a station,
it gives the times of onset and cessation of rains
(thereby gives the duration of rainfall events).
• They can provide continuous record for a number of
days. They are very useful in hilly and far off areas.
 Tipping Bucket Type

• The catch from the funnel falls onto one of a pair of

small buckets.
• These buckets are so balanced that when 0.25mm of
rain falls into one bucket, it tips bringing the other
bucket in position.
• The water from the tipped bucket is collected in a can.
• Tipping actuates an electric circuit which causes a pen
to trace a record on the graph paper wrapped around
a clock work driven drum.
 Tipping Bucket Type
• Water collected in the can is measured at regular
intervals to check the total rainfall recorded.
• The record from this rain gauge gives the intensity of
rainfall.
• These can be installed in stations located in hilly and
inaccessible areas.
Figure: Recording Mechanism of Tipping Bucket Type Recording Rain gauge
 Weighing Bucket Type
• The catch empties into a bucket mounted on a
weighing scale.
• The weight of the bucket and its contents are
recorded on a clock work driven chart.
• The instrument gives a plot of cumulative rainfall
against time (mass curve of rainfall).
• In some of the instruments, the recording unit is so
devised that the pen reverses its direction at a preset
value.
Figure: Recording Mechanism of Weighing Type Recording Rain gauge
 Natural Syphon Type (Float Type)
• The rainfall collected in the funnel shaped collector is
led into a float chamber, causing the float to rise.
• As the float rises, a pen attached to the float through
a lever system moves and records the rainfall on a
rotating drum driven by a clockwork mechanism.
• A syphon arrangement empties the float chamber
when the float has reached a preset maximum level.
• The vertical lines in the chart correspond to sudden
emptying of the float chamber by syphonic action,
which resets the pen to zero level.
• If there is no rainfall, the pen traces a horizontal line.
Figure: Recording from a natural siphon-type
 Radar Measurements of rainfall
• A radar transmits a pulse of electromagnetic energy as a
beam in a direction determined by a movable antenna.
• Microwave radar (wavelength ~ 3 to 10cm) is used for
determining the areal extent, location, and movement of
rainstorms.
• Also the amount of rainfall over large areas can be
determined using radars with a good degree of accuracy.
 Radar Measurements of rainfall
• The radar emits a regular succession of pulse of
electromagnetic radiation in a narrow beam so that when
the raindrops intercept a radar beam, its intensity can
easily be known.
• The hydrological range of radar is about 200km.
• Heavy rains – 10 cm radar, Light rains and snow – 5cm
radar
 Radar Measurements of Rainfall

CZ
Pr = 2
r
where Pr= average echopower, Z = radar-echo factor,
r= distance to target volume and C = a constant.
Generally the factor Z is related to the intensity of
rainfall as

Z = aI b
 Measurement of Evaporation
USWB Class A Evaporation Pan

• A pan of diameter 1210 mm and depth 255 mm

• Depth of water is maintained between 18 and 20 cm

• The pan is made of unpainted GI sheet

• The pan is placed on a wooden platform of height 15

cm above ground level to allow free air circulation
below the pan

• Evaporation is measured by measuring the depth of

water in a stilling well with a hook gauge
USWB Class A Evaporation Pan
 Measurement of Evaporation

Compute the daily evaporation from a Class A

pan if the amounts of water added to bring the
level to the fixed point are as follows: