Classification of precipitation type from space borne precipitation radar data and 2D wavelet analysis

Classification of precipitation into convective and stratiform type is an important product of Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) data set. This work presents the results of a new algorithm, used to classify precipitation into convective and stratiform types, developed using two dimensional wavelet transform. The methodology analyzes the three dimensional radar profile of precipitation in both horizontal and vertical directions (with respect to the surface of the earth). The rain type is determined by analyzing the wavelet coefficients of the horizontal and vertical details of each plane. The data structure used in each plane is rebuilt using the suitable wavelet coefficients to extract the proper signal components at the selected plane. Data from TRMM-PR are analyzed to produce precipitation type classification. The results are compared against ground validation inferences.