The objective of this study was to ascertain the magnitude and
distribution of rainfall over coastal waters of the northwestern United
States and to compare values with those at nearby land stations.
Precipitation was measured with gauges at Totem, rainfall amounts
were assessed from weather reports at lightships off the coast, and
precipitation frequencies at lightships and land stations were examined.
Results from the three methods were quite consistent; precipitation.
on at sea was only about one-third that at coastal land stations.
These values are appreciably less than previous estimates of oceanic
rainfall in this area, and they support the view that a significant
horizontal gradient of precipitation may exist between the coast and
open sea. Rainfall typically occurs both at sea and ashore on the
same day, but it rains fewer hours at sea. The relative amount of
rain at sea varies with the type of atmospheric system, and rainfall
at the coast appears to be intensified by frictional processes.
Estimates of evaporation minus precipitation are less negative
than earlier ones; consideration of their relation to surface salinity
leads to distributions that are in good agreement with oceanographic
knowledge. The newer values suggest that in this region the heat
gain by the atmosphere may be less (but moisture entrainment may
be greater) than was thought. / Graduation date: 1973
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/28315 |
| Date | 30 August 1972 |
| Creators | Reed, Ronald Keith |
| Contributors | Elliott, William P. |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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