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Titel |
Precipitation and snow cover in the Himalaya: from reanalysis to regional climate simulations |
VerfasserIn |
M. Ménégoz, H. Gallée, H. W. Jacobi |
Medientyp |
Artikel
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Sprache |
Englisch
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ISSN |
1027-5606
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Digitales Dokument |
URL |
Erschienen |
In: Hydrology and Earth System Sciences ; 17, no. 10 ; Nr. 17, no. 10 (2013-10-15), S.3921-3936 |
Datensatznummer |
250085955
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Publikation (Nr.) |
copernicus.org/hess-17-3921-2013.pdf |
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Zusammenfassung |
We applied a Regional Climate Model (RCM) to simulate precipitation and snow
cover over the Himalaya, between March 2000 and December 2002. Due to its
higher resolution, our model simulates a more realistic spatial variability
of wind and precipitation than those of the reanalysis of the European Centre
of Medium range Weather Forecast (ECMWF) used as lateral boundaries. In this
region, we found very large discrepancies between the estimations of
precipitation provided by reanalysis, rain gauges networks, satellite
observations, and our RCM simulation. Our model clearly underestimates
precipitation at the foothills of the Himalaya and in its eastern part.
However, our simulation provides a first estimation of liquid and solid
precipitation in high altitude areas, where satellite and rain gauge networks
are not very reliable. During the two years of simulation, our model
resembles the snow cover extent and duration quite accurately in these areas.
Both snow accumulation and snow cover duration differ widely along the
Himalaya: snowfall can occur during the whole year in western Himalaya, due
to both summer monsoon and mid-latitude low pressure systems bringing
moisture into this region. In Central Himalaya and on the Tibetan Plateau, a
much more marked dry season occurs from October to March. Snow cover does not
have a pronounced seasonal cycle in these regions, since it depends both on
the quite variable duration of the monsoon and on the rare but possible
occurrence of snowfall during the extra-monsoon period. |
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