Undercatch adjustments for tipping-bucket gauge measurements of solid precipitation

Manufacturer-provided TB gauges were evaluated at five test sites during the World Meteorological Organization Solid Precipitation Intercomparison Experiment (WMO-SPICE), with most gauge types tested at more than one site. The test results were used to develop and evaluate adjustments for the undercatch of solid precipitation by heated TB gauges.

New methods were also developed to address challenges specific to measurements from heated TB gauges. Tipping-bucket transfer functions were created specifically to minimize the sum of errors over the course of the adjusted multiseasonal accumulation. This was based on the hypothesis that the best transfer function produces the most accurate long-term precipitation records, rather than accurate catch efficiency measurements or accurate daily or hourly precipitation measurements.