Validation the applicability of satellite based rainfall data for runoff simulation and water balance analysis

The spatial rainfall is one of the key inputs for the distributed hydrological model, and their precisions heavily affect the accuracy of streamflow predictions from a hydrological model. Satellite-based precipitation products are expected to offer an alternative to ground based rainfall estimates in the present and the foreseeable future. The present study deals with evaluation of using TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) rainfall for hydrological processes simulation and water balance analysis at the catchment scale. The results show that the WATLAC (Water Flow Model for Lake Catchment) model using conventional rain gauge data produces an overall good fit, but the results for TRMM rainfall data are discontented. The similar water balance analysis results are gained no matter using the rain gauges data or TRMM rainfall data in the WATLAC model, and the different rainfall data have a trivial effect on the components of water budget.