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gpmpersucifld·v1·dataset

Rainfall estimated from cloud images, Iowa floods study

GPM Ground Validation Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information using Artificial Neural Networks Cloud Classification System (PERSIANN-CCS) IFloodS
atmosphere NASA GHRC_DAAC Level 4 ASCIInetCDF-4
In plain English

What it measures. Estimates of rainfall at the ground, worked out from how clouds look in satellite images rather than measured directly. It covers a 2013 flood-study window over Iowa.

How it's made. Produced by the PERSIANN-CCS method, which uses a neural network to classify cloud-top images from many weather satellites and convert them into half-hourly rain estimates.

How & where you'd use it. Collected for a NASA-led flood field study, it lets researchers compare satellite rain estimates against ground radar and gauges to check how well such methods capture heavy rain.

What's measured

Atmosphere › Atmospheric Water Vapor › Water Vapor Indicators › Total Precipitable WaterAtmosphere › Precipitation › Precipitation Rate

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span2013-04-01 → 2013-07-01
  • Measured byMETEOSAT-6 (VISSR-METEOSAT) · Aqua (AMSR-E) · GPM (DPR) · NOAA-16 (AMSU-B) · NOAA-15 (AMSU-B) · GMS-5 (VISSR-GMS) · NOAA-17 (AMSU-B) · DMSP 5D-2/F13 (SSM/I) · DMSP 5D-2/F14 (SSM/I) · GOES-8 (GOES-8 Imager) · METEOSAT-7 (VISSR-METEOSAT) · DMSP 5D-3/F15 (SSM/I) · GOES-10 (GOES-10 Imager) · TRMM (PR, TMI)
  • Processing levelLevel 4
  • Spatial extent-96.84, 39.36, -87.16, 45.24
  • FormatsASCII, netCDF-4
  • StatusCOMPLETE

What you can do with it

  • Map air pollutants — NO₂, aerosols, ozone
  • Track greenhouse gases and Earth's energy budget
  • Feed weather and air-quality analysis
Official description

The GPM Ground Validation Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information using Artificial Neural Networks Cloud Classification System (PERSIANN-CCS) IFloodS dataset is a subset from the global 30-minute PERSIANN-CCS files generated in near-real time selected for the time period of the GPM Ground Validation Iowa Flood Studies (IFloodS) field campaign. The main goal of IFloodS were to collect detailed measurements of precipitation at the Earth’s surface using ground instruments and advanced weather radars and to simultaneously collect data from satellites passing overhead. This PERSIANN-CCS data product is available in ASCII and netCDF-4 formats from April 1, 2013 thru July 1, 2013.

Get the data

gpmpersucifld_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="gpmpersucifld",
    version="1",
    bounding_box=(-122.5, 37.2, -121.8, 37.9),  # your area (W,S,E,N)
    temporal=("2024-01-01", "2024-12-31"),       # your dates
)
files = earthaccess.open(results)   # stream straight from GHRC_DAAC
Browsing CMR needs no login. Downloading or streaming bytes needs a free Earthdata Login + the earthaccess package.