Surface Meteorological Station Data for MC3E Convective Cloud Study

April 5 to June 7, 2011, this dataset provides surface meteorological measurements from the NOAA Southern Great Plains Facility during the Midlatitude Continental Convective Clouds Experiment (MC3E). It was collected by NASA to characterize convective cloud systems and their environment, supporting model and satellite rainfall algorithm development. The data includes wind speed, wind direction, temperature, humidity, and precipitation measurements from specific ground-based instruments.

Use Cases

• Validating satellite rainfall estimates from the GPM mission using ground-based precipitation measurements.
• Analyzing relationships between surface conditions (temperature, humidity) and convective cloud development.
• Studying wind patterns and their interaction with convective systems during the spring season.
• Providing ground truth environmental data for constraining and improving numerical weather prediction models.

Strengths

• Provides a focused two-month time series (April 5 to June 7, 2011) from a major field campaign.
• Includes co-located measurements of five key meteorological variables from calibrated instruments.
• Designed specifically to support the validation of space-based rainfall algorithms, offering direct application.

Limitations

• Exact row count, file size, and specific column names are not provided across any source.
• Sources conflict on the last updated date, with one showing 2011-06-07 and another showing a future date of 2026-03-13.
• Limited temporal coverage to a single spring season, which may not represent annual variability.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Collected via a propeller wind monitor at 10m, a ground temperature/humidity sensor, and a ground tipping rain gauge at the NOAA Southern Great Plains Facility.

Time Range

2011-04-05 to 2011-06-07

Freshness

2026-03-13 02:01:24.141464

Geography

NOAA Southern Great Plains Facility