Changes in the type of precipitation and associated cloud types in Eastern Romania (1961–2008)

•We study changes in the frequency of hydrometeors in Eastern Romania.•Increasing frequency of showery precipitation (especially rain showers)•Decreasing frequency of days with stratiform precipitation•Good agreement between precipitation-type and cloud-type frequencies

Recent climate change is characterized (among other things) by changes in the frequency of some meteorological phenomena. This paper deals with the long-term changes in various precipitation types, and the connection between their variability and cloud type frequencies, at 11 meteorological stations from Eastern Romania over 1961–2008. These stations were selected with respect to data record completeness for all considered variables (weather phenomena and cloud type).The meteorological variables involved in the present study are: monthly number of days with rain, snowfall, snow showers, rain and snow (sleet), sleet showers and monthly frequency of the Cumulonimbus, Nimbostratus and Stratus clouds.Our results show that all stations present statistically significant decreasing trends in the number of days with rain in the warm period of the year. Changes in the frequency of days for each precipitation type show statistically significant decreasing trends for non-convective (stratiform) precipitation – rain, drizzle, sleet and snowfall –, while the frequencies of rain shower and snow shower (convective precipitation) are increasing. Cloud types show decreasing trends for Nimbostratus and Stratus, and increasing trends for Cumulonimbus.