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CENTRAL ITALY (CI) hydro-meteorological site
The hydrometeorological site in Central Italy (CI) is located in the area in Figure 1, at the eastern
boundary of the HyMex North West Mediterranean Target Area (TA) and at the western boundary
of the Adriatic TA. The area is fairly dense populated and it includes the urban area of Rome, with
some 4 millions inhabitants. The orography of CI is quite complex, going from sea level to nearly
3000 m in less than 150 km. In fact, the Tirrenic and Adriatic costs are separated by the Apennine
range, which reaches its highest peak (Gran Sasso peak) in the CI area. The CI area involves many
rivers, including two major basins: the Aniene-Tiber basin (1000 km long) and the Aterno-Pescara
basin (300 km long).
Figure 1: Zooming-in the hydrometeorological in Central Italy (CI). The red line indicates the transect where the
orographic-induced precipitation will be studied during the SOP.
The CI site is interested by both western and eastern fronts coming from the Atlantic Ocean and
Siberia, respectively. Therefore, depending both on the geographical position and on the orography,
different meteorological events may occur in this area. Orographic precipitations play an important
role due to the central Apennine range. Moreover, Mesoscale Convective Systems (MCS)
commonly develop in Central Italy during late summer and beginning of autumn, often causing
localized hailstorms with cluster organized cells. Western fronts may heavily hit the Tiber basin
crossing large urban areas (Rome), whereas eastern fronts can cause flash floods along the Adriatic
coastline. Both catchments have recently experienced floods (the Aniene-Tiber in May 2008 and
Aterno-Pescara in 1992), producing severe damages. The CI area is affected by moderate rate of
precipitation mostly occurring during autumn with a mean value of 158.8 mm for November and
245 mm in December (Table 1).
Montly cumulated rain 2008-2009
Months
mean
[mm]
max
[mm]
std
[mm]
median
[mm]
January
120.1
558.6
69.9
109.2
February
72.0
541.8
63.4
53.79
March
132.2
338.0
100.5
128.4
April
90.6
283.2
51.7
90.6
1/15
May
73.6
839.6
82.3
92.4
June
87.4
355.6
51.4
100.4
July
31.0
157.0
28.9
36.8
August
17.5
96.3
19.4
22.2
September
69.1
190.8
38.8
72.6
October
98.3
451.0
64.0
84.8
November
170.9
437.6
55.7
158.8
December
234.7
649.4
93.0
245.2
Table 1: Monthly mean cumulated rain over the CI site.
An intensive special observational period (SOP), the IDRAX campaign, is planned in CI during fall
2012 for the investigation of orography-induced precipitation and MCS triggering. Considering that
the first HyMeX SOP over the Adriatic area is envisaged for September-December 2012 (SOP1.1),
the SOP2.1 is planned for February-April 2013 and SOP1.2 for September-December 2013, SOP2.2
is planned for February-April 2014, the CI site will participate with a full instrumentation to the
EOP and SOP1.1, whereas the operational instrumentation will contribute to the remaining SOPs.
The SOP activities will be coordinated by CETEMPS (Center of Excellence for the integration of
remote sensing and numerical modeling for the forecast of severe weather), University of L’Aquila,
a town located in the heart of the CI site.
Instrumentation
The CI area is monitored in different ways by several institutions, including CETEMPS, the Italian
Department of Civil Protection (DPC), the Italian National Center for Aviation Meteorology and
Climatology (CNMCA), Department of Electrical Engineerging University of Rome LaSapienza
(DIESAP), the Italian National Research Council (CNR), the regional authorities (Regione Abruzzo
and Regione Lazio).
The CI area is covered by the following operational instrumentation:
- 1 meteo C-band radar single-polarization located at Monte Midia (operated by CETEMPS)
- 1 meteo C-band radar polarimetric located at Il Monte (DPC)
- 1 meteo C-band radar single-polarization located at Monte Serano (DPC)
- 1 balloon-borne sounding station at L’Aquila (CETEMPS)
- 1 mini portable X-band polarimetric radar (DIESAP)
- ~200 raingauges and meteo stations (rain and thermometer) (regional authorities) in Figure 2.
- 1 raman lidar + 1 ceilometer, located in L’Aquila (CETEMPS)
- 2 radiometers with 13-23-31 GHz + 1 ceilometer, located in downtown Roma (DIESAP)
Other data sources operated by third parties should be available during the SOP, including:
- 1 balloon-borne sounding at Pratica di Mare, Rome (launched operationally by CNMCA)
- 1 portable polarimetric X-band radar (owned by DPC)
- 2 disdrometers, located in Lazio/Abruzzo (owned by DPC)
- 1 meteo dual polarization C-band radar (CNR)
The definite or tentative locations of some of these instruments is shown in Figure 3.
2/15
Gauge distribution
Latitude (Decimal Degree)
43
42.8
42.6
42.4
42.2
42
41.8
41.6
41.4
41.2
41
12
12.5
13
13.5
14
14.5
Longitude (Decimal Degree)
Figure 2: Locations of the operational meteo-pluvio stations distributed over the CI region.
and thus the planned SOP provides data of interest for both NW Med and Adriatic TAs.
R1 = DWR-93C C-band radar (M. Midia, AQ)
R2 = WR-25XP X-band Dual Pol radar (RM)
R3 = METEOR 50 DX X-band Dual Pol radar (AQ)
R4 = METEOR 660 C Dual Pol radar (Tufillo,CH)
R5 = METEOR 660 C-band (M.Serano, PG)
R6 = POLAR 55C C-band Dual Pol (Frascati, RM)
D1 = Disdrometer (RM)
D2 = Disdrometer (Avezzano, AQ)
S1 = RAOB (AQ)
T1-2 = Radiometers (RM)
L1 = Lidar Raman (AQ)
F1 = Lighting sensor (AQ)
Figure 3: Tentative location of the instruments deployed during IDRAX (within HyMeX SOP1.1).
Instrumentation includes:
- Atmospheric measurements
o RS
o Wind profilers
o GPS
o Photometers
o Lidars
o MWRs
o Radars
o Microphysics, cloud and aerosol monitoring
o Lightning detection
o …
- Met. Surface stations
- Hydrological and soil measurements
o Rain gauges
o Disdrometers
3/15
o
o
Water level and discharge networks
Energy balance, radiative flux stations
Table …: Instrumentation available on CI site
Instrument
(form #)
TA
Location
Period
LOP/EOP/SOP #
Frequency or
number
Parameters
Data
provider
Mobility
(F/T/M) *
Funding **
status
Contact Person
NW Med / A
1
Precipitation
CETEMPS
F
Until 2015
Frank Marzano
NW Med / A
1
Precipitation
CETEMPS
F
Until 2015
Frank Marzano
Frank Marzano
Dates
1
LOP
C-band radar
EOP
C-band radar
SOP
C-band radar
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
1
Precipitation
CETEMPS
F
OK
C-band radar
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
1
Precipitation
DPC
F
OK
C-band radar
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
1
Precipitation
DPC
F
OK
C-band radar
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
1
Precipitation
CNR
F
OK
Baldini
X-band radar
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
1
Precipitation
DIESAP
F
OK
Frank Marzano
Lidar
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
1
WV
CETEMPS
F
OK
Rizi Vincenzo
Ceilometer
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
1
Cloud base
CETEMPS
F
OK
Rizi Vincenzo
Ceilometer
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
1
Cloud base
DIESAP
F
OK
Frank Marzano
MW radiometers
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
2
WV
DIESAP
F
OK
Frank Marzano
RS
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
1
T, WV
CETEMPS
F
OK
Rizi Vincenzo
Lighting sensor
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
3
Ligthings
CETEMPS
F
OK
Frank Marzano
Gauge and PTU
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
~200
Precip., T, RH
Reg. Auth,
F
OK
Errico Picciotti
Frequency or
number
Parameters
Data
provider
Mobility
(F/T/M) *
Funding **
status
Contact Person3
Table …: Other potentially available facilities on CI site
Instrument
(form #)1
TA
Location
Period
LOP/EOP/SOP #
X-band radar
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
Precipitation
DPC
M
Pending
Frank Marzano
Disdrometers
NW Med / A
SOP1.1
Precipitation
DPC
M
Pending
Frank Marzano
1
2
Dates2
Refers to the instrument form number in the data catalogue
Indicate starting and end dates of deployment
*
F = Fixed ; T = Transportable ; M = Mobile
**
3
e.g. OK, Pending (application if any), Until…, …
Instrument PI
4/15
LIGURIA-TUSCANY (LT) hydro-meteorological site
Liguria
Liguria is a coastal North-Western Italian region, where Alpine/Apennine chain reaches the lowest
distance from Mediterranean Sea. The high elevation of the mountains - more than 2.000 meters
upon sea level at few tens km in distance from the sea - causes a complex orography with a lot of
small/medium catchments characterized by high slope and limited extension.
Liguria extension is about 5.500 km2, and the 1.600.000 inhabitants mainly live along the coastal
towns and villages. The regional basins can be an optimal target for flash floods studies, both for
hydrologic/hydraulic and for social purposes, given the vulnerability of many urban areas. It is
possible to focus attention on a range of basins from <10 km2 to more then 1000 km2 area (Magra
River, 1600 km2).
Fig. 1 Satellite image of Liguria region (left); Liguria Region location in the Italian territory (right)
The observation of such small-scale phenomena (heavy precipitation events, floods and flash
floods, droughts) needs an high density real-time gauging network. For this reason, the regional
Civil Protection has been implemented during the last 15 years the Liguria Region Meteo
Hydrological Observatory (OMIRL), a ground observation operational network that includes:
• 150 rain gauges;
• 45 stream level gauges;
• other meteorological parameters sensors (wind, relative humidity, solar radiation, air
pressure, snow depth).
Every ground-station is connected with the Control Centre, located in Genova, by a radio link.
Similarly all of them are equipped with a GPRS or GSM backup system.
Rain gauges have 5 minutes span step, whereas stream level data are recorded with 15 minutes
time step. All data merge into a database and, after validation and time-aggregation processes, are
available for different purposes.
The Fig. 2 shows rain gauges and stream level real-time data location, based on GoogleMaps,
available at http://www.meteoliguria.it
5/15
Fig. 2 Observation network: rain gauges(up), hydrometric level(down)
The region is also covered by a weather radar of the Italian National Radar Network. It is located
at the top of Monte Settepani (1345 m) in the Apennines between Liguria and Piedmont. The time
step is 5 minutes and the spatial resolution is about 1 km². Monte Settepani radar has both Doppler
and double polarization capabilities.
6/15
Fig. 3 Mt. Settepani Weather Radar observations – 5 min. cumulated rainfall field (mm)
Entella basin has been designated to be the Pilot –site being a reasonable compromise between
HyMeX suggestions and the hydological conditions of the region.
Entella basin, 370 km2 extension, is one of the biggest catchments reaching Ligurian Sea. As most
of small/medium regional basins, it is characterised by steep slopes (maximum elevation, Monte
Aiona, 1702 m, is at about 15 km from the coastline) and rocky stream bed until the small coastal
plain. Here it crosses large urban areas (Chiavari, 27.500 inhabitants and Lavagna, 13.000
inhabitants) with high vulnerability.
The basin is provided by 14 real-time raingauges and 4 stream level gauges; in 3 of them, regular
(monthly) discharge measurement are performed to determine rating curve. In particular, at Panesi
(both rainfall and water level gauges, near the stream outlet), a cableway allows for measuring
discharges even during flood events.
The basin is also well-covered by the radar, and it can be identified as the right catchment for
floods, water balance and droughts studies.
7/15
Fig. 4 Map of the Liguria Pilot-site (Entella River Catchment) with location of observing stations
Tuscany
Tuscany is a coastal region located in central Italy. It covers an area of about 23000 km2. Tuscany is
characterized by complex topography and strong land cover variations; it is surrounded by the
Mediterranean Sea westwards and the chain of Apennine Mountains northwards (up to 2000 meters
a.s.l.) and eastwards (up to 1600 meters a.s.l.). In particular, only 8.4% territory is flat, while 66.5%
is made of hills and 25.1% of mountains.
Topography of Tuscany region
Consorzio LaMMA receives data recorded by a very dense meteo station network managed by
8/15
Hydrological Service of Tuscany region. The large dataset of ground observation operational
network comprises:
• 368 rain-gauges
• 131 hydrometers
• 190 thermometers
• 209 anemometers
• 156 hygrometers
• 21 barometers
see figure below for the location of sensors:
Locations of the regional ground based network accessed by Consorzio LaMMA
Moreover the dataset includes two buoys; the first one located close to the Island of Gorgona in the
north of Tuscany and the second one close to the Island of Giglio in the south of the region.
The two buoys record quasi real-time the following parameters:
● wave height
● wave direction
● wave period
● skin temperature
In addition to the above cited buoys, Consorzio LaMMA manages one Acoustic Doppler Current
Profiler (ADCP) instrument close to the coast and located a few hundreds meters far from the shore
(Pontile Solvada, Vada, latitude: 43.35536, longitude: 10.4239). It records every 30 minutes water
current velocities over a range of depths, from the sea surface every meter. Moreover it collects
conditions about the sea (significant wave height, wave direction, wave period) and its level.
Consorzio LaMMA owns also a RASS (Radio Acoustic Sounding System) instrument located close
to Florence (latidude: 43.81723, longitude: 11.16698). It operates at radio wavelenght (about 0.5
9/15
meters) and it is able to collect temperature profilometric data up to 400/500 meters of height. In the
near future Consorzio LaMMA is planning to buy and use data from SODAR instrument which is
able to collect profilometric wind velocity and direction data using acoustic waves (about 1000 Hz).
In the very near future, Consorzio LaMMA is planning to cover the area of interest by three new
RADARs; two of them located close to the Tyrrenean sea. These new brand RADARs operate in the
X band (9.4 GHz) and Consorzio LaMMA is devoted to the implementation of procedures for
rainfall estimates. The area covered by this network of RADAR is displayed in the figure below:
Fig. 5 The new network of regional RADAR
Moreover the above mentioned network is going to be improved within an agreement of
collaboration with Meteo France and Regional Meteo Service of Liguria and Sardegna in the
framework of the RESMAR project. This project is financed by European Commission and is
aimed at mitigating the hydrological risk on a regional spatial scale. One of the expected results of
the project is the setup of a shared radar dataset between the partners involved.
The main advantages of using the X band sensor is a reduced environmental impact on the site of
installation, reduced costs. On the other hand the spatial coverage of the instrument is reduced with
respect to the more used C band.
10/15
Instrument/netw Location
ork
Raingauge
see map
TTO link Periods Responsible
(LOP/E person
OP/SOP
)
TTO2a
SOP
Luca Fibbi
Hydrometers
see map
TTO2a
SOP
Luca Fibbi
LaMMa
Thermometers
see map
TTO2a
SOP
Luca Fibbi
LaMMa
Anemometers
see map
TTO2a
SOP
Luca Fibbi
LaMMa
Hygrometers
see map
TTO2a
SOP
Luca Fibbi
LaMMa
Barometers
see map
TTO2a
SOP
Luca Fibbi
LaMMa
TTO4b
SOP
Luca Fibbi
LaMMa
Acoustic
lat:
TTO4
Doppler Current 43.81723,
Profiler (ADCP) lon:
11.16698
RASS-SODAR
TTO1e
(planned)
SOP
Carlo Brandini
LaMMa
SOP
Francesca
Calastrini
LaMMa
Andrea Antonini
LaMMa
Buoys
X-band Radar
(planned)
Met RADAR
(C-BAND)
see map
TTO1f
SOP
Monte
Crocione
(Lucca)
TTO1f
SOP
Institution,
Country
email
LaMMa
[email protected]
ete.toscana.it
[email protected]
ete.toscana.it
[email protected]
ete.toscana.it
[email protected]
ete.toscana.it
[email protected]
ete.toscana.it
[email protected]
ete.toscana.it
[email protected]
ete.toscana.it
brandini@lam
ma.rete.toscana.
it
calastrini@lam
ma.rete.toscana.
it
antonini@lamm
a.rete.toscana.it
Dep. Civil
Protection
(???)
11/15
NORTH-EASTERN ITALY (NEI) hydro-meteorological site
The “The North-Eastern Italy HydroMeteorological Observatory” (NEI HMO) started in 2000 with
a focus on hydrometeorological processes triggering flash floods and debris flows in the alpine
catchments of the area including three administrative regions: Veneto, Trentino-Alto Adige and
Friuli. The aim of the observatory is to provide fundamental hydrometeorological data required for
understanding hydro-meteorological processes involved in very intense, localised and poorly
observed events like flash floods and debris flows in humid alpine catchments.
The NEI-HMO cover an area of almost 40.000 km2, characterised by multiple river system, a wide
flood plain area and the eastern alpine range. Three river systems are specifically considered in the
activities of the NEI-HMO: the Adige river system, the Bacchiglione river system, the Tagliamento
river system (Figure 1). Orography plays an essential role in shaping the regime of extreme
hydrometeorological events (Figure 2). The selection of the main study catchments was designed to
include the most important features controlling the triggering of floods and debris flows in the
region.
Figure 1: The NEI-HMO region with the indications of the three river systems monitored: Adige, Bacchiglione
(with Posina, Timonchio, Leogra and Agno), and Tagliamento. The position of the four weather radars covering
the area is also marked, as well as the range circles (120 km). The four weather radars are as follows: (1) Mt
Macaion, (2) Mt Grande, (3) Concordia Sagittaria, and (4) Fossalon di Grado.
The Adige river is the second longest river of Italy, 360 km long, rising in the Tyrolean Alps, N
Italy. It flows south, past Bolzano, Trent, and Verona, to the Po valley where it turns east to flow
into the Adriatic Sea. The research is focused on the mountainous part of the basin (12000 km2),
which includes two distinct administrative units: Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano (almost 7000
km2) and Provincia Autonoma di Trento (5000 km2). Altitudes range from 100 m a.s.l. up to 4000 m
a.s.l.. The region is located south of the inner alpine province: it ranges between a dry climate (600
12/15
mm/yr, due to the dual sheltering effect of the range to both the north and the south) and a wet
climate (2500 mm/yr) along the Venetian plains. The southern range experiences showery
precipitation with thunderstorm and hail, particularly in summer and autumn.
Most floods in the Adige basin are widespread phenomena generated by frontal precipitation
systems. This is the case for the most important floods in 1882, 1965, 1966, and for the floods
occurred from 1998 to 2002. The city of Trento, as well as a large number of towns in the basin,
were flooded and heavily hit during the 1966 event. The region, and especially the upper Adige
river basin, is frequently hit by flash flood events (Fortezza, July 1999), which involve some dozens
km2 and trigger important debris flow phenomena.
The Adige valley is one of the major transport routes through the Alps. In fact it is one of the few
that is open all year round that connect Italy with central Europe. A highway and a railroad lead to
the Brenner pass and connect thus Verona (Italy) with Munich (Germany). Studies are under way to
construct a high velocity railway link through this valley. Green tourism is highly developed in the
region, as well as dispersed urbanization, thus leading to high and increasing flash flood risk.
Fig. 2: Spatial variability of average values of 24-hr annual rainfall maxima over the NEI-HMO.
The Bacchiglione river system at Montegaldella covers an area of 1390 km2. It is located
completely in the Veneto region. The main observational focus for the Bacchiglione is on the
headwater catchments of Posina, Leogra, Timonchio and Agno (the last one forming an independent
river system) and their role in the disastrous flood occurred in the area during November 2010.
The Tagliamento river (with an area of 2871 km2) is the dominant river system of the Friuli region
in northeastern Italy. From north to south (a linear distance of less than 100 km), the Tagliamento
traverses four major regions: (i) the Julian and Carnian Alps, (ii) Prealps, (iii) the upper and lower
Friulian plain, and (iv) the coast. This steep environmental gradient from north to south is
associated with climatic differences; e.g., annual precipitation ranges from 3,100 to 1000 mm per
year and mean annual temperature from 5 to 14 °C. The southern fringe of the Carnian and Julian
Alps frequently receives very intensive rainstorms, resulting in severe erosion, especially in the
13/15
alpine area. The alpine area of Friuli mainly consists of limestone, with a spatial sequence of
Silurian, Devonian, Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous formations north to south.
The principal tributaries of the upper catchment, the Lumiei, the Degano, the But and the Fella,
converge and join the Tagliamento River forming a palmate pattern. Their basins are characterised
by steep slopes and lie in one of the wettest regions of Italy, where annual precipitation can reach
3000 mm. Rainfall is concentrated mainly in heavy and erosive showers determining the torrential
regime of the river. Furthermore, the mountain basin is seismically active and has a dense
distribution of landslides, resulting in much bed load and a braided nature of the river downstream.
At Pioverno (2400 km2), the 10 and 100 year floods are estimated to be 2150 m3/s and 4300 m3/s,
respectively.
The general scientific objective is to provide a better understanding of the hydro-meteorological
processes involved in very intense, localised and poorly observed events like flash floods and debris
flows in humid alpine catchments, through a synergic modelling and monitoring approach,
involving meteorologist and hydrologist.
The morphology of the NEI target area makes this region particularly attractive as a laboratory for
the study of intense precipitation. The Alps, particularly on the steep slope of Veneto and Friuli, are
generally oriented from west to east and therefore exposed to the relatively warm and moist
southerly flow, coming from the Adriatic. The interaction between the orography and the impinging
flow may trigger heavy rainfall especially in the presence of deep convective activity. In case of
intense synoptic activity over the Mediterranean, intense precipitation may affect a large portion of
the target area, being both stratiform (orographic) and convective in nature. Floods may occur as in
the recent disastrous case of November 2010 Vicenza flood. On the other hand, the formation of
intense convective systems sometimes organized in Mesoscale Convective Systems (MCS) or
squall lines, are responsible for localized flash floods. It was the case of the flood occurred in the
Venice Lagoon in September 2007, due to the formation of a quasi-stationary MCS that was
responsible for precipitation exceeding 320mm in less than 12 h. Similar MCS were observed
forming
in
September
over
the
same
area
also
in
different
years.
For the study of these severe phenomena that characterize the NEI area, an in-depth knowledge of
the role of the Adriatic Sea is a key issue: a precise description of the upstream condition, of the
surface heat and moisture fluxes producing flow modification is crucial. The knowledge of the
circulation on the sea surface will be realized through a suitable monitoring activity using buoys
stationed in the northern Adriatic, data from a platform off the coast of Venice, vertical soundings of
the atmosphere and through remote sensing platform. Radars available in the area will provide
detailed information on the distribution and intensity of rain and on the microphysical structure of
the precipitating systems.
Modelling activity will focus on: 1) improvement of convective-scale forecasting systems to
advance prediction capabilities of severe weather episodes; 2) validation of model results, using the
HyMeX database; 3) development of new parameterization scheme to be used in high resolution
models; 4) numerical simulations for the study of flow regimes and physical mechanisms
responsible for heavy precipitation over complex orography; 5) coupling between meteorological
and hydrological models for discharge forecasting also designing ensemble systems.
The main focus of the NEI HMO activities is on observational and modelling studies of extreme
floods in humid mountainous basins. The core science issues which are examined are (Creutin and
Borga, 2003): identification of the critical controlling processes (related to soil properties,
topography and precipitation variability) for extreme flood response in humid, mountainous basins;
identification of dependencies between control processes and 1) space-time scales, and 2) rainfall
and flood frequency; development of observational strategies tied to the characteristics of the
events. On-going investigations are focused on:
i) Coupled monitoring and modelling studies of runoff generation and shallow landsliding
during extreme rainfall events.
ii) Development of an observational strategies focused on post flash flood field surveys
The operational observation system for the NEI-HMO includes:
14/15
(1) a network of four weather radar systems: Mt. Macaion, Mt. Grande, Fossalon di Grado. The four
radars provides a good and complete coverage of the HMO (Figure 1).
(2) a network of ground-based instruments, including 240 tipping bucket rain gauges and 55
hydrometric stations.
A number of different agencies are responsible for the operation of the hydrometeorological data
gathering and analysis: Ufficio Idrologico in Provincia of Bolzano, METEOTRENTINO in
Provincia of Trento, CSIM in the Veneto Region, Regional Civil Protection in Friuli.
Access to original raw radar data is granted for the four antenna systems.
Hydrological models and flood forecasting systems developed by University of Padova have been
established on the three main river systems monitored in the area.
15/15