Download Data issues for Latin America

Data Issues for Latin
America
Dr. Hugo G. Hidalgo
School of Physics
University of Costa Rica
GEOSS Support for the IPCC Assessments
February 2011
[email protected]
Acknowledgements
Thank you to GEOSS for financial support for this visit.

The author is partially supported by projects VI-805-A9-22,
VI-805-A9-532 and VI-808-A9-180 of the University of Costa
Rica.

Thank you to the School of Physics for the support to this
visit.

Thank you to FUNDEVI/UCR for partial additional support

Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
2
Data issues for Latin America

Sources (surface observations, upper air, remote sensing)

Temporal and spatial coverage (missing data)
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Quality control (outliers, temporal and spatial
inconsistencies)
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Costs of data (data are in many cases not free)

Availability (restricted use, release agreements)
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

Format (including digitalization and file format, temporal
and spatial resolution)
Reliability (changes in station location or conditions,
changes in equipment or observer, history of calibration
and maintenance of instruments)
Adequacy
Hugo
G. Hidalgo
for specific
uses de
(related
Universidad
Costa Ricato all of the above)
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Other issues for Latin America

Complex topography

Large variety of climates and microclimates

Rich biodiversity

Developing economies

Vulnerable societies
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
4
Specific uses
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Restrospective (hydro) climatic variability analysis
Extreme events analysis (considering different time scales
of floods and droughts)
Detection and Attribution of climate change
Climate change impacts assessments on human and
environmental systems (agriculture, hydropower
generation, ecology, social-economic, wildfire potential,
public health, water quality and others)
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
5
Hydrologic simulations are needed
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
6
Streamflow data for calibration
1969 to 1979 (GRDC)
Monthly
streamflow
gages
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
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LA impacts AR4
Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change.
M.L.
Parry, O.F. Canziani, J.P.Universidad
Palutikof, P.J. de
vanCosta
der Linden
Hugo G.
Hidalgo
Ricaand C.E. Hanson,
Eds. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 976 pp
8
Historical trends in rainfall
Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. M.L. Parry,
G. Hidalgo
Universidad
Costa
Rica University Press, Cambridge, UK, 976
9 pp
O.F. Canziani,Hugo
J.P. Palutikof,
P.J. van der Linden and
C.E. Hanson,de
Eds.
Cambridge
Spatial and temporal coverage
CIGEFI's Network
of daily precipitation
stations
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
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Spatial and temporal coverage
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
11
Precip significant correlation
distance (degrees)
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
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The problem of missing
necessary data
Following the International Hydrological Decade (IHD, 1965-1974)
the number of stations in the region increased dramatically.
Since the 1990s many monitoring programs have been dismantled.
Satellite data cannot replace surface observations (maybe in the
future)
The current network does not cover large parts of the region (which
have large spatial variations due to the richness of
microclimates)
It has not been proven that the 140 stations available in Central
America during the 1980s are enough to represent climate
variability adequately.
Saving money by closing stations is foolish, the costs will be
reflected in other items such as over-dimensioned dams and
Hugo
G. Hidalgo
Universidad
de and
Costabridges.
Rica
bridges
or the collapse
of dams
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AVAILABILITY OF SURFACE
OBSERVATIONS
http://www.atmosfera.cl/HTML/antiguo/TEMAS/INSTRUMENTACION/FIG1b.htm
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
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National Climatic Data Center:
Global Historical Climatology
Network (GHCN)
Temp
Precip
Core elements: Daily
precipitation, snowfall,
snowdepth, tmax and
tmin data.
Quality controlled.

Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
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Integrated Surface Database:
Summary of the Day
Many parameters:
including daily
precipitation,tmax and
tmin data.
Quality controlled.

Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
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Examples of Ground-based Gridded
Datasets


Global Meteorological Forcing Dataset: The base
meteorological data consist of daily time-series for the
period of 1950 through 1999 of precipitation, maximum
temperature, minimum temperature, and wind speed.
Data from a variety of sources were compiled and gridded
to a resolution of 1/2-degree over all global land areas.
Maurer, E.P., J.C. Adam, and A.W. Wood, 2009, Climate
model based consensus on the hydrologic impacts of
climate change to the Rio Lempa basin of Central
America, Hydrology and Earth System Sciences 13, 183194.
Global Meteorological Forcing Dataset for land
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Costa Rica
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surface modeling:Universidad
A globalde50-yr
(1948-2000) dataset of
Examples of Satellite + Groundbased Gridded Datasets

CRN073: Daily and monthly precip dataset covering
mesoamerica, 0.5 x 0.5 degrees, 1958-2000. Magana et
al. 2003
CMAP: Global precip, Monthly 2.5 x 2.5 degrees, 19792009. Xie, P. and P. A. Arkin, 1996: Analyses of Global
Monthly Precipitation Using Gauge Observations, Satellite
Estimates, and Numerical Model Predictions. J. Climate,
9, 840 -858. Xie, P. and P. A. Arkin, 1997: Global
Precipitation: A 17-Year Monthly Analysis Based on Gauge
Observations, Satellite Estimates and Numerical Model
Outputs. BAMS, 78, 2539-2558.
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
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Webber and Willmott:
precip and temp

From GHCN

Gridded 0.5 x 0.5 degrees

Monthly

1960-1990

No tmax, tmin

Extremes:


Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
Drought
extremes: ok,
short term
events like
floods: not ok
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Latin America data needs
We need to estimate climate variability and work on
covering all the subregions using monitoring stations.
We need to develop more the use of satellite data to
become less dependent of the surface data,
especially in hard to reach areas.
Politicians and decision-makers must provide funding to
improve monitoring networks.
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
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Improving data issues
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Create regional databases from global data with
homogeneous quality control
Reformat data and create archives in standard format for
the region
Need to make inventories of data that are not free or not
available in the internet
Need to establish collaborations with researchers from
several countries to use restricted data in regional studies
More validation of satellite data is needed
More integrated regional analysis of the impacts of climate
change are needed
Make available freeUniversidad
data products
(e.g. regional
de Costa Rica
interpolated datasets)
Hugo G. Hidalgo
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Thank you!
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
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Need for reducing uncertainties
“By the 2020s, the net increase in the number of people
experiencing water stress due to climate change is
likely to be between 7 and 77 million (medium
confidence). While, for the second half of the century, the
potential water availability reduction and the increasing
demand from an increasing regional population would
increase these figures to between 60 and 150 million.
[13.4.3]”
Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change. M.L. Parry, O.F. Canziani, J.P. Palutikof, P.J. van der Linden and C.E. Hanson,
Eds. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 976 pp
Hugo G. Hidalgo
Universidad de Costa Rica
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