Spatio-temporal variability of precipitation in southeast asia analyzed using the empirical orthogonal function (EOF) technique

The empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis is used to investigate the spatial and temporal variations of precipitation rate measured by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite in the Southeast Asian region. The EOF analysis decomposes the rainfall data into several modes of variations. Each mode can be associated with one or several mechanisms of variations. The most dominant mode is associated with annual seasonal monsoons while the second and third modes have moderate El-Nino influences. The precipitation rate does not seem to have significant correlation with the global warming index.