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Spatial distribution of heavy storm rainfalls in Illinois
Author(s) -
Huff F. A.
Publication year - 1968
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/wr004i001p00047
Subject(s) - storm , skewness , spatial distribution , environmental science , hydrology (agriculture) , meteorology , geology , statistics , mathematics , geography , geotechnical engineering
An 11‐year continuous record from 49 recording rain gages on 400 square miles in central Illinois has been used to derive characteristic area‐depth relations in heavy rainstorms for storm periods of 30 minutes to 48 hours on areas of 50, 100, 200, and 400 square miles. First, eight general equations were statistically tested to determine the most appropriate fitting method for the area‐depth curve. Over‐all, an equation relating rainfall depth to the square root of the area received the highest score. However, the equation that fit best was found to vary with areal size, mean rainfall, and storm duration, which, in turn, reflected general trends in relative variability and skewness of the rainfall spatial distribution. Because of the high degree of variability in the area‐depth relation between storms, the analytical results have been presented as probability distributions for given sets of conditions with respect to area, storm duration, and rainfall volume. Thus, the user is provided with both average curves and curves applicable to more extreme patterns of storm rainfall.