Spatial downscaling of TRMM precipitation data based on the orographical effect and meteorological conditions in a mountainous area

• We examine the relationships between rainfall and environmental factors.
• Orographical effect and pre-storm meteorological conditions are mainly considered.
• A downscaling scheme is developed based on effects of these environmental factors.
• The approach captures the spatial pattern and preserves the intensity of rainfall.
• The approach gives better results than traditional interpolation methods.

The lack of high resolution precipitation data has posed great challenges to the study and management of extreme rainfall events. Satellite-based rainfall products with large areal coverage provide a potential alternative source of data where in situ measurements are not available. However, the mismatch in scale between these products and model requirements has limited their application and demonstrates that satellite data must be downscaled before being used. This study developed a statistical spatial downscaling scheme based on the relationships between precipitation and related environmental factors such as local topography and pre-storm meteorological conditions. The method was applied to disaggregate the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) 3B42 products, which have a resolution of 0.25° × 0.25°, to 1 × 1 km gridded rainfall fields. The TRMM datasets in accord with six rainstorm events in the Xiao River basin were used to validate the effectiveness of this approach. The downscaled precipitation data were compared with ground observations and exhibited good agreement with r2 values ranging from 0.612 to 0.838. In addition, the proposed approach provided better results than the conventional spline and kriging interpolation methods, indicating its promise in the management of extreme rainfall events. The uncertainties in the final results and the implications for further study were discussed, and the needs for additional rigorous investigations of the rainfall physical process prior to institutionalizing the use of satellite data were highlighted.