| Knowledge of the distribution of precipitation over oceans is important to our understanding of the atmosphere-ocean interaction; however, accurate precipitation measurements are difficult to achieve and rarely are ships equipped to do the job. This study brings attention to the unique 27-year record (1954-1980) of measured precipitation amount at Ocean Weather Station "P" (50;Despite the different nature of the two methods, results obtained by either method are generally in accordance. The analysis suggests that the record of measured precipitation from Ocean Weather Station "P" (OWS "P") is a substantial improvement over previous estimates in the northeast Pacific. The results reinforce the credibility of the OWS "P" record of the measured precipitation for the period between 1954 and 1967, but indicate that the second half of the record, particularly during the early 1970's, is questionable. At the end of this study, measured precipitation amounts (for 1954-67) and estimated precipitation amounts (for 1968-80) are given to aid studies dealing with energy balance calculations and the verification of the oceanic precipitation generated by global climate models. |
