Articles | Volume 17, issue 9
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-17-4715-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-17-4715-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Data description paper
| 
25 Sep 2025
Data description paper |
| 25 Sep 2025
| 25 Sep 2025
The Dutch real-time gauge-adjusted radar precipitation product
R&D Observations and Data Technology, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, Utrechtseweg 297, 3731 GA De Bilt, the Netherlands
Hidde Leijnse
R&D Observations and Data Technology, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, Utrechtseweg 297, 3731 GA De Bilt, the Netherlands
Mats Veldhuizen
R&D Observations and Data Technology, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, Utrechtseweg 297, 3731 GA De Bilt, the Netherlands
Bastiaan Anker
R&D Observations and Data Technology, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, Utrechtseweg 297, 3731 GA De Bilt, the Netherlands
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Microwave links, often part of mobile phone networks, can be used to measure rainfall along the link path by determining the signal loss caused by rainfall. We use high-frequency data of multiple microwave links to recreate commonly used sampling strategies. For time intervals up to 1 min, the influence of sampling strategies on estimated rainfall intensities is relatively little, while for intervals longer than 5–15 min, the sampling strategy can have significant influences on the estimates.
Aart Overeem, Hidde Leijnse, Gerard van der Schrier, Else van den Besselaar, Irene Garcia-Marti, and Lotte Wilhelmina de Vos
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Short summary
Short summary
Ground-based radar precipitation products typically need adjustment with rain gauge accumulations to achieve a reasonable accuracy. Crowdsourced rain gauge networks have a much higher density than conventional ones. Here, a 1-year personal weather station (PWS) gauge dataset is obtained. After quality control, the 1 h PWS gauge accumulations are merged with pan-European radar accumulations. The potential of crowdsourcing to improve radar precipitation products in (near) real time is confirmed.
Linda Bogerd, Hidde Leijnse, Aart Overeem, and Remko Uijlenhoet
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 247–259, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-247-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-247-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Algorithms merge satellite radiometer data from various frequency channels, each tied to a different footprint size. We studied the uncertainty associated with sampling (over the Netherlands using 4 years of data) as precipitation is highly variable in space and time by simulating ground-based data as satellite footprints. Though sampling affects precipitation estimates, it doesn’t explain all discrepancies. Overall, uncertainties in the algorithm seem more influential than how data is sampled.
Aart Overeem, Else van den Besselaar, Gerard van der Schrier, Jan Fokke Meirink, Emiel van der Plas, and Hidde Leijnse
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 1441–1464, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1441-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1441-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
EURADCLIM is a new precipitation dataset covering a large part of Europe. It is based on weather radar data to provide local precipitation information every hour and combined with rain gauge data to obtain good precipitation estimates. EURADCLIM provides a much better reference for validation of weather model output and satellite precipitation datasets. It also allows for climate monitoring and better evaluation of extreme precipitation events and their impact (landslides, flooding).
Wagner Wolff, Aart Overeem, Hidde Leijnse, and Remko Uijlenhoet
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 485–502, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-485-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-485-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The existing infrastructure for cellular communication is promising for ground-based rainfall remote sensing. Rain-induced signal attenuation is used in dedicated algorithms for retrieving rainfall depth along commercial microwave links (CMLs) between cell phone towers. This processing is a source of many uncertainties about input data, algorithm structures, parameters, CML network, and local climate. Application of a stochastic optimization method leads to improved CML rainfall estimates.
Ruben Imhoff, Claudia Brauer, Klaas-Jan van Heeringen, Hidde Leijnse, Aart Overeem, Albrecht Weerts, and Remko Uijlenhoet
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 4061–4080, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4061-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4061-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Significant biases in real-time radar rainfall products limit the use for hydrometeorological forecasting. We introduce CARROTS (Climatology-based Adjustments for Radar Rainfall in an OperaTional Setting), a set of fixed bias reduction factors to correct radar rainfall products and to benchmark other correction algorithms. When tested for 12 Dutch basins, estimated rainfall and simulated discharges with CARROTS generally outperform those using the operational mean field bias adjustments.
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Short summary
The Dutch real-time gauge-adjusted radar product provides 5 min precipitation accumulations every 5 min covering the Netherlands and the area around it. It plays a key role in hydrological decision-support systems and as input for short-term weather forecasts. Major changes were implemented on 31 January 2023, and the associated quality improvement is presented. Moreover, the employed radar and rain gauge datasets and the algorithms needed to produce this real-time radar product are described.
The Dutch real-time gauge-adjusted radar product provides 5 min precipitation accumulations...
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