Stage-Dependent Microphysical Structures of Meiyu Heavy Rainfall in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley Revealed by GPM DPR
This study presents a comprehensive analysis of the microphysical structures of Meiyu heavy rainfall (near-surface rainfall intensity > 8 mm/h) across different life stages in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley (YHRV). We classified the heavy rainfall events into three life stages of developing, mat...
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MDPI AG
2025-07-01
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| author | Zhongyu Huang Leilei Kou Peng Hu Haiyang Gao Yanqing Xie Liguo Zhang |
| author_facet | Zhongyu Huang Leilei Kou Peng Hu Haiyang Gao Yanqing Xie Liguo Zhang |
| author_sort | Zhongyu Huang |
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| description | This study presents a comprehensive analysis of the microphysical structures of Meiyu heavy rainfall (near-surface rainfall intensity > 8 mm/h) across different life stages in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley (YHRV). We classified the heavy rainfall events into three life stages of developing, mature, and dissipating using ERA5 reanalysis and IMERG precipitation estimates, and examined vertical microphysical structures using Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) data from the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) satellite during the Meiyu period from 2014 to 2023. The results showed that convective heavy rainfall during the mature stage exhibits peak radar reflectivity and surface rainfall rates, with the largest near-surface mass weighted diameter (<i>D<sub>m</sub></i> ≈ 1.8 mm) and the smallest droplet concentration (<i>dBN<sub>w</sub></i> ≈ 38). Downdrafts in the dissipating stage preferentially remove large ice particles, whereas sustained moisture influx stabilizes droplet concentrations. Stratiform heavy rainfall, characterized by weak updrafts, displays narrower particle size distributions. During dissipation, particle breakups dominate, reducing <i>D<sub>m</sub></i> while increasing <i>dBN<sub>w</sub></i>. The analysis of the relationship between microphysical parameters and rainfall rate revealed that convective heavy rainfall shows synchronized growth of <i>D<sub>m</sub></i> and <i>dBN<sub>w</sub></i> during the developing stage, with <i>D<sub>m</sub></i> peaking at about 2.1 mm near 70 mm/h before stabilizing in the mature stage, followed by small-particle dominance in the dissipating stage. In contrast, stratiform rainfall exhibits a “small size, high concentration” regime, where the rainfall rate correlates primarily with increasing <i>dBN<sub>w</sub></i>. Additionally, convective heavy rainfall demonstrates about 22% higher precipitation efficiency than stratiform systems, while stratiform rainfall shows a 25% efficiency surge during the dissipation stage compared to other stages. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-8b51ed3b48864977a193b7ae664ae4f8 |
| institution | Matheson Library |
| issn | 2073-4433 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Atmosphere |
| spelling | doaj-art-8b51ed3b48864977a193b7ae664ae4f82025-07-25T13:13:42ZengMDPI AGAtmosphere2073-44332025-07-0116788610.3390/atmos16070886Stage-Dependent Microphysical Structures of Meiyu Heavy Rainfall in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley Revealed by GPM DPRZhongyu Huang0Leilei Kou1Peng Hu2Haiyang Gao3Yanqing Xie4Liguo Zhang5School of Atmospheric Physics, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaSchool of Atmospheric Physics, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaSchool of Atmospheric Physics, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaSchool of Atmospheric Physics, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaShanghai Institute of Satellite Engineering, Shanghai 201109, ChinaShanghai Institute of Satellite Engineering, Shanghai 201109, ChinaThis study presents a comprehensive analysis of the microphysical structures of Meiyu heavy rainfall (near-surface rainfall intensity > 8 mm/h) across different life stages in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley (YHRV). We classified the heavy rainfall events into three life stages of developing, mature, and dissipating using ERA5 reanalysis and IMERG precipitation estimates, and examined vertical microphysical structures using Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) data from the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) satellite during the Meiyu period from 2014 to 2023. The results showed that convective heavy rainfall during the mature stage exhibits peak radar reflectivity and surface rainfall rates, with the largest near-surface mass weighted diameter (<i>D<sub>m</sub></i> ≈ 1.8 mm) and the smallest droplet concentration (<i>dBN<sub>w</sub></i> ≈ 38). Downdrafts in the dissipating stage preferentially remove large ice particles, whereas sustained moisture influx stabilizes droplet concentrations. Stratiform heavy rainfall, characterized by weak updrafts, displays narrower particle size distributions. During dissipation, particle breakups dominate, reducing <i>D<sub>m</sub></i> while increasing <i>dBN<sub>w</sub></i>. The analysis of the relationship between microphysical parameters and rainfall rate revealed that convective heavy rainfall shows synchronized growth of <i>D<sub>m</sub></i> and <i>dBN<sub>w</sub></i> during the developing stage, with <i>D<sub>m</sub></i> peaking at about 2.1 mm near 70 mm/h before stabilizing in the mature stage, followed by small-particle dominance in the dissipating stage. In contrast, stratiform rainfall exhibits a “small size, high concentration” regime, where the rainfall rate correlates primarily with increasing <i>dBN<sub>w</sub></i>. Additionally, convective heavy rainfall demonstrates about 22% higher precipitation efficiency than stratiform systems, while stratiform rainfall shows a 25% efficiency surge during the dissipation stage compared to other stages.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/16/7/886Global Precipitation Measurement Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (GPM DPR)Meiyu heavy rainfallYangtze-Huaihe River Valley (YHRV)microphysical structuresprecipitation life stages |
| spellingShingle | Zhongyu Huang Leilei Kou Peng Hu Haiyang Gao Yanqing Xie Liguo Zhang Stage-Dependent Microphysical Structures of Meiyu Heavy Rainfall in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley Revealed by GPM DPR Atmosphere Global Precipitation Measurement Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (GPM DPR) Meiyu heavy rainfall Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley (YHRV) microphysical structures precipitation life stages |
| title | Stage-Dependent Microphysical Structures of Meiyu Heavy Rainfall in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley Revealed by GPM DPR |
| title_full | Stage-Dependent Microphysical Structures of Meiyu Heavy Rainfall in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley Revealed by GPM DPR |
| title_fullStr | Stage-Dependent Microphysical Structures of Meiyu Heavy Rainfall in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley Revealed by GPM DPR |
| title_full_unstemmed | Stage-Dependent Microphysical Structures of Meiyu Heavy Rainfall in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley Revealed by GPM DPR |
| title_short | Stage-Dependent Microphysical Structures of Meiyu Heavy Rainfall in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley Revealed by GPM DPR |
| title_sort | stage dependent microphysical structures of meiyu heavy rainfall in the yangtze huaihe river valley revealed by gpm dpr |
| topic | Global Precipitation Measurement Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (GPM DPR) Meiyu heavy rainfall Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley (YHRV) microphysical structures precipitation life stages |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/16/7/886 |
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