Liu et al. (2026) Exploring Satellite Visible Band Observations for Quantitative Precipitation Estimation

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

Identification

• Journal: Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-08-19
• Authors: Yanan Liu, Xinjian Ma, Xiaorong Fang, Bo Li, Hung-Lung Allen Huang, Jianfu Yuan, Yuheng Zhao, Lingjia Gu
• DOI: 10.1029/2026jd047179

Research Groups

• Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
• National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT)

Short Summary

This study presents a quantitative precipitation estimation framework that utilizes 2-km visible-band observations from the Himawari-8 geostationary satellite to improve high-resolution precipitation information. The results show improved precipitation-area delineation and false-alarm control compared to conventional single-time or single-band visible configurations.

Objective

• Investigate the potential of high-spatial-resolution visible imagery for fine-scale precipitation monitoring

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: 2-km spatial resolution
• Temporal Scale: Hourly temporal resolution, with a focus on daytime events

Methodology and Data

• Models used: U-Net convolutional neural network architecture
• Data sources: Himawari-8 geostationary satellite visible-band observations (6 consecutive daytime multispectral images)

Main Results

• Multispectral and temporally continuous visible-band information improves precipitation-area delineation and false-alarm control compared to single-time or single-band visible configurations.
• VIS-based retrieval shows performance comparable to IR QPE in selected light-to-moderate rain-rate ranges.
• VIS+IR QPE configuration provides a more balanced performance by combining VIS-derived cloud texture and evolution with selected IR thermal and water-vapor information.

Contributions

• This study highlights the potential of high-spatial-resolution visible imagery as a complementary daytime source for fine-scale precipitation monitoring, complementing infrared and microwave observations.

Funding

• Not specified in the provided text.

Citation

@article{Liu2026Exploring,
  author = {Liu, Yanan and Ma, Xinjian and Fang, Xiaorong and Li, Bo and Huang, Hung-Lung Allen and Yuan, Jianfu and Zhao, Yuheng and Gu, Lingjia},
  title = {Exploring Satellite Visible Band Observations for Quantitative Precipitation Estimation},
  journal = {Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1029/2026jd047179},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1029/2026jd047179}
}