Scaling properties of raindrop size distributions as measured by a dense array of optical disdrometers

•Fractal dimension does not vary between instruments within a dense detector array.•Interstorm variability of fractal dimension can be substantial.•Fractal dimension consistently decreases monotonically with increasing drop size.•Fractal dimension is not well correlated to bulk rainfall variables.

SummaryA dense network of optical disdrometers with 1 min resolution was utilized through the winter months of 2013-2014 in South Carolina, USA, to explore the manner in which box-counting fractal dimension is related to drop size. Ten storms of a duration exceeding eight hours were selected for detailed analysis. It was discovered that detector-to-detector variation within each storm was negligible, though storm-to-storm variability could be substantial. The box-counting fractal dimension was found to decrease with increasing drop size, suggesting that large drops are more temporally clustered than small drops. Implications for raindrop sampling are discussed.