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Variations in tropical cyclone precipitation in Texas (1950 to 2009)
Author(s) -
Zhu Laiyin,
Quiring Steven M.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: atmospheres
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2169-8996
pISSN - 2169-897X
DOI - 10.1029/2012jd018554
Subject(s) - precipitation , environmental science , tropical cyclone , climatology , meteorology , geography , geology
Abstract Spatial and temporal variations of tropical cyclone precipitation (TCP) in Texas are examined using 60 years of precipitation data from Cooperative Observing Network gages (1950 to 2009). An automated extraction method is used to identify TCP. Texas receives an average of 123.5 mm of TCP/year, which is ~13% of the state's mean annual precipitation. September is the month with the most TCP with an average of 18.5 mm. As expected, TCP generally deceases as you move inland. Long‐term trends (>50 years) in TCP are evident at some locations, but there are no statistically significant long‐term trends in aggregated annual TCP metrics for Texas. Despite the lack of long‐term trends, TCP metrics show some spectral power at periodicities of ~2‐3 years, ~5‐8 years, and >10 years. Areas within 400 km of the coast have higher risk of extreme daily TCP (>100 mm), but inland Texas can also occasionally experience extreme TCP. In some areas in southeastern Texas the probability of receiving >100 mm of daily TCP in any given year is ~0.30 (i.e., daily TCP exceeds 100 mm, on average, 1 out every 3 years).