Over 9 inches of rain fell in 8 hours during a terrain-locked convection event over Sparta, New Jersey, on August 12, 2000. This case study documents the flooding rains that closed roads, washed out bridges, and caused mudslides. The data was compiled by SCIOPS and published by UCAR/JOSS/NOAA/CODIAC.
Use Cases
- Analyze the relationship between terrain features and convective rainfall rates, which reached 4 inches per hour.
- Model flood risk by correlating precipitation totals, reported as over 9 inches in 8 hours, with reported infrastructure damage.
- Study the temporal evolution of regenerative warm-topped convection using the event's timestamped data.
- Validate satellite or radar precipitation estimates against ground-reported rainfall measurements for this specific case.
Strengths
- Documents a specific, high-impact weather event with precise temporal data (2000-08-12).
- Includes concrete, quantified metrics like rainfall rates (4 inches/hour) and total accumulation (9+ inches).
Limitations
- Dataset scope is limited to a single case study event, reducing generalizability.
- Specific data columns, file formats, and total record counts are unknown.
- Data is over 20 years old, which may limit relevance for contemporary climate modeling without complementary newer data.
Provenance
- Source
- UCAR/JOSS/NOAA/CODIAC and COMET program.
- Collection Method
- Case study compilation from media reports and meteorological analysis.
- Time Range
- 2000-08-12.
- Freshness
- null
- Geography
- State of New Jersey, United States, with focus on Sparta.