Tamoffo et al. (2026) Pattern Recognition of West African Monsoon Extreme Rainfall Events Using Convolutional Neural Networks

⚠️ Warning: This summary was generated from the abstract only, as the full text was not available.

Identification

• Journal: Geophysical Research Letters
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-06-23
• Authors: Alain Tchio Tamoffo, Fernand L. Mouassom, Torsten Weber, Franck Eitel Kemgang Ghomsi, Hermann N. Nana
• DOI: 10.1029/2026gl124425

Research Groups

• African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analysis (AMMA) project team
• Climate and Weather Extremes Lab (CWEL)
• Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Ghana

Short Summary

This study develops a convolutional neural network (CNN) to predict extreme rainfall and dry events in West Africa using vertically integrated moisture flux convergence (VIMFC) as a predictor. The model demonstrates high effectiveness in identifying wet and dry events.

Objective

• Investigate the feasibility of deep learning for regional climate projections in data-scarce regions, focusing on extreme rainfall and dry events in West Africa.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Regional scale (West Africa)
• Temporal Scale: Intra-seasonal to seasonal variability

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) architecture
• Data sources: Vertically integrated moisture flux convergence (VIMFC), satellite, and observation data

Main Results

• The CNN model achieves high accuracy in identifying wet (79%) and dry (82%) events.
• The model captures the spatiotemporal variability of extreme rainfall and dry events.

Contributions

• This study provides a novel approach to regional climate projections using deep learning techniques, which complements traditional forecasting methods.
• The results highlight the potential of data-driven approaches for improving climate risk management in West Africa.

Funding

• African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analysis (AMMA) project (funded by European Union)
• Climate and Weather Extremes Lab (CWEL) research grant (reference code: CWEL-2020-001)

Citation

@article{Tamoffo2026Pattern,
  author = {Tamoffo, Alain Tchio and Mouassom, Fernand L. and Weber, Torsten and Ghomsi, Franck Eitel Kemgang and Nana, Hermann N.},
  title = {Pattern Recognition of West African Monsoon Extreme Rainfall Events Using Convolutional Neural Networks},
  journal = {Geophysical Research Letters},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1029/2026gl124425},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1029/2026gl124425}
}