The Precipitation and Actual Evapotranspiration Products project is part of the water information research and development alliance between CSIRO's Water for a Healthy Country Flagship and the Bureau of Meteorology.
Project summary
At present no precipitation data set exists at a scale or resolution of accuracy that can adequately meet all the needs of the Bureau of Meteorology.
Water scarcity and demand for water are major challenges facing Australia. The need to accurately monitor, assess and forecast the availability, condition and use of water resources is now more vital than ever.
A key component of the Water Information Research and Development Alliance is developing fundamental gridded water data products for precipitation and actual evapotranspiration across Australia.
Objective
At present no precipitation data set exists at a scale or resolution of accuracy that can adequately meet all the needs of the Bureau of Meteorology in their role of hydrologic assessment and forecasting.
There is also a lack of assessment of the suitability of the range of algorithms for computing actual evapotranspiration in the context of hydrological modelling.
Through the critical assessment of existing algorithms, and the development of new techniques, this project will develop the precipitation and evapotranspiration data products required by the Bureau of Meteorology to achieve better hydrologic monitoring and modelling, and assist in their delivery of improved water management and reporting.
Key research deliverables
From mid-2009 to 2012, the Precipitation and Actual Evapotranspiration Products project will deliver:
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algorithms for blending the measurements and estimates of precipitation to produced an enhanced gridded data product
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an assessment of the temporal, spatial and physical suitability of various algorithms for estimating actual evapotranspiration
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prototype systems to routinely generate precipitation and evapotranspiration data sets.
Partner
The research alliance brings together Water for a Healthy Country’s leading expertise in water and information sciences with the Bureau of Meteorology’s operational role in hydrologic analysis and prediction.
The Bureau of Meteorology is drawing on CSIRO research expertise to improve the information available to Australia’s water industry and increase its capacity to manage our water resources.
Find out more about Water Information Research and Development Alliance.
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