Legates Surface and Ship Observations of Precipitation Climatology 0.5 x 0.5 degree V1 (RAIN_LEGATES)

Errors in the gauge catch result from wind-field deformation above the orifice of the gauge, wetting losses, and evaporation from the gauge and amount globally to nearly 8, 2, and 1 percent of the catch, respectively. A procedure was developed to estimate these errors and was used to obtain better estimates of global precipitation. Spatial variations in gauge type, air temperature, wind speed, and natural vegetation have been interpolated to the nodes of a 0.5 degrees of latitude by 0.5 degrees of longitude lattice using a spherically-based interpolation algorithm.

The data set is used to validate general circulation model simulations of the present-day precipitation climate, for ground-based comparison with satellite-derived precipitation estimates, and as a basis for global water balance studies.