On the influence of mountains on large-scale precipitation: a deterministic approach towards orographic PMP

The present paper is a brief report on a three-year research project carried out for the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in Vienna, Austria. The results concerning the problems of precipitation enhancement by terrain-induced vertical motion are a first step towards new considerations regarding Probable Maximum Floods (PMF). For an Alpine country like Austria, the development of a hierarchy of concepts, using deterministic model physics and a digital terrain representation, appeared appropriate. The basic features of the model are consistent extensions of WMO recommendations.