Impact of Misrepresentation of Freezing-Level Height by the TRMM Algorithm on Shallow Rain Statistics over India and Adjoining Oceans

The estimation of freezing level-height (FLH) by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) algorithm is evaluated, against several other data sources, over India and adjoining oceans. It is observed that the TRMM algorithm either underestimates or overestimates the FLH [relative to radiosonde- and ECMWF Interim Re-Analysis (ERA)-derived FLH] at latitudes > 20°N over India. The agreement between the FLHs obtained from ERA and radiosonde and the TRMM-derived brightband height suggests that usage of ERA-derived FLH may improve shallow rain statistics. The impact of misrepresentation of FLH by the TRMM algorithm on shallow rain statistics is assessed by using 13 yr of TRMM precipitation radar measurements. It is noted that the misidentification of FLH alone affects (mostly underestimates) the shallow rain occurrence and rain fraction by 3%–8% over the study region. The magnitude of underestimation is large over the southern slopes of the Himalaya, the northern plains, and in northwestern India. TRMM identifies most of the shallow rain (30%–50%) as cold rain in regions where the underestimation of FLH is high. This situation could introduce some error in the correction of reflectivity for attenuation and in the retrieval of latent heat profiles.