Central equatorial Africa is deficient in long-term, ground-based measurements of rainfall; therefore, the aim of this study is to assess the accuracy of three high-resolution, satellite-based rainfall products in western Uganda for the 2001–10 period. The three products are African Rainfall Climatology, version 2 (ARC2); African Rainfall Estimation Algorithm, version 2 (RFE2); and 3B42 from th...

We use 130 years data for studying correlative effects due to solar cycle and activity phenomena on the occurrence of the Indian Monsoon rainfall. We compute the correlation coefficients and significance of correlation coefficients for the seasonal and the annual data. We find that: (i) for the whole years 1871–2000, the spring and southwest monsoon rainfall variabilities have significant posit...

By assessing current leaf litter nutrient dynamics, we may be able to predict responses of nutrient cycling in tropical ecosystems to future environmental change. The goal of this study was to assess whether nutrient cycling is related to seasonal variation in rainfall in a wet tropical forest. We examined leaf litter of an old-growth tropical rain forest in N.E. Costa Rica over a 4-year period...

Global warming is projected to increase the frequency and intensity of droughts in the Mediterranean region, as well as the occurrence of large fires. Understanding the interactions between drought, fire and plant responses is therefore important. In this study, we present an experiment in which rainfall patterns were modified to simulate various levels of drought in a Mediterranean shrubland o...

There is a need for more skilful medium-term rainfall forecasts for the Bowen Basin, a key coal-mining region in Queensland, Australia. Prolonged heavy rainfall during the 2010–2011 summer was not forecasted and it severely affected industry operations. Official forecasts are currently based on general circulation models (GCMs) and indicate there will be change in the timing and strength of the...

Rainfall variability has a significant impact on crop production with manifestations in frequent crop failure in semiarid areas. This study used the parameterized APSIM crop model to investigate how rainfall variability may affect yields of improved sorghum varieties based on long-term historical rainfall and projected climate. Analyses of historical rainfall indicate a mix of nonsignificant an...

An interception model that links the temporal variability of rainfall with the storm-based description of the interception process is derived. Analytical formulae for long-term interception loss are obtained for precipitation with statistical characteristics derived from observations. The analysis of the results indicates that the point interception loss is controlled primarily by three time sc...

Studies over the last decade into Australian rainfall have often noted the presence of long-term and shortterm trends but have rarely identified any statistically significant trends, mainly because the data are characterised by high interannual variability. The only exception is the southwest region of Western Australia (SWWA) where a relatively sudden decrease in winter season (and annual) rai...

The effects of water erosion (including long-term historical erosion and single erosion event) on soil properties and productivity in different farming systems were investigated. A typical sloping cropland with homogeneous soil properties was designed in 2009 and then protected from other external disturbances except natural water erosion. In 2012, this cropland was divided in three equally siz...