Improving high-latitude and cold region precipitation analysis

Accurate estimation of precipitation is important for science and application. In high latitudes precipitation estimation is difficult due to several challenges in remote sensing of precipitation and sparseness of in situ observations. Furthermore, in situ observations can also have large errors, especially for measurement of snowfall that occurs frequently in high latitudes. Here, we show how CloudSat and the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) can provide additional information to refine our quantification of high latitude precipitation. We show this through case studies over ocean, Eurasia, Tibetan Plateau, and arctic basins. The results suggest that combination of CloudSat and GRACE can provide valuable information on quantifying snowfall accumulation that can also be used to assess gauge undercatch correction methods. Together with ongoing efforts under GPM to advance Level 2 precipitation retrievals and their combination, great opportunities exist to advance precipitation retrieval in high latitudes.