Gridded simulations of available precipitation (rainfall + snowmelt) for Great Britain, developed from observed data (1961-2018) and climate projections (1980-2080)
https://doi.org/10.5285/755e0369-f8db-4550-aabe-3f9c9fbcb93d
Cite this dataset as:
Lane, R.A.; Kay, A.L. (2022). Gridded simulations of available precipitation (rainfall + snowmelt) for Great Britain, developed from observed data (1961-2018) and climate projections (1980-2080). NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre. https://doi.org/10.5285/755e0369-f8db-4550-aabe-3f9c9fbcb93d
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This dataset is available under the terms of the Open Government Licence 
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This dataset presents nationally consistent simulations of available precipitation (rainfall + snowmelt) for Great Britain. These include simulations driven by observational data covering January 1961 – December 2018 and simulations driven by Regional Climate Model (RCM) projections covering December 1980 - November 2080. Both are provided as gridded data at 1km resolution.
The observed input data was HadUK-Grid 1km daily precipitation and temperature. The RCM input data was a 12-member perturbed parameter ensemble from the UK Climate Projections 2018 (UKCP18), provided at a ‘Regional’ 12km resolution aligned with the GB national grid. A simple snowmelt module was used to transform these time-series of precipitation and temperature into available precipitation.
This data was developed for, and used within, the Enhanced Future Flows and Groundwater (eFLaG) project (Hannaford et al., 2022). The eFLaG project was established through a partnership project funded by the Met Office led component of the Strategic Priorities Fund Climate Resilience Programme under contract P107493 (CR19_4 UK Climate Resilience).
The observed input data was HadUK-Grid 1km daily precipitation and temperature. The RCM input data was a 12-member perturbed parameter ensemble from the UK Climate Projections 2018 (UKCP18), provided at a ‘Regional’ 12km resolution aligned with the GB national grid. A simple snowmelt module was used to transform these time-series of precipitation and temperature into available precipitation.
This data was developed for, and used within, the Enhanced Future Flows and Groundwater (eFLaG) project (Hannaford et al., 2022). The eFLaG project was established through a partnership project funded by the Met Office led component of the Strategic Priorities Fund Climate Resilience Programme under contract P107493 (CR19_4 UK Climate Resilience).
Publication date: 2022-09-27
View numbers valid from 01 June 2023 Download numbers valid from 20 June 2024 (information prior to this was not collected)
Format
NetCDF
Spatial information
Study area
Spatial representation type
Raster
Spatial reference system
OSGB 1936 / British National Grid
Temporal information
Temporal extent
1980-01-01 to 2080-12-31
Provenance & quality
For the observation-based simulations of available precipitation, the HadUK-Grid 1km observed daily precipitation and minimum/maximum daily temperatures were input directly into a snowmelt module.
For the RCM-based simulations of available precipitation, climate model output from the UKCP18 Regional projections was used. This consisted of a 12-member perturbed parameter RCM ensemble, providing daily precipitation and minimum/maximum daily temperatures at 12km resolution. Precipitation data was bias corrected using a simple monthly-mean approach, and then downscaled to 1km based on patterns of average annual rainfall.
Temperature data was downscaled to 1km resolution using a lapse rate and elevation data. The downscaled RCM data were then input into the snowmelt module to provide available precipitation.
A detailed description of the data processing is given in the accompanying documentation.
For the RCM-based simulations of available precipitation, climate model output from the UKCP18 Regional projections was used. This consisted of a 12-member perturbed parameter RCM ensemble, providing daily precipitation and minimum/maximum daily temperatures at 12km resolution. Precipitation data was bias corrected using a simple monthly-mean approach, and then downscaled to 1km based on patterns of average annual rainfall.
Temperature data was downscaled to 1km resolution using a lapse rate and elevation data. The downscaled RCM data were then input into the snowmelt module to provide available precipitation.
A detailed description of the data processing is given in the accompanying documentation.
Licensing and constraints
This dataset is available under the terms of the Open Government Licence
Cite this dataset as:
Lane, R.A.; Kay, A.L. (2022). Gridded simulations of available precipitation (rainfall + snowmelt) for Great Britain, developed from observed data (1961-2018) and climate projections (1980-2080). NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre. https://doi.org/10.5285/755e0369-f8db-4550-aabe-3f9c9fbcb93d
Related
Citations
Hannaford, J., Mackay, J.D., Ascott, M., Bell, V.A., Chitson, T., Cole, S., Counsell, C., Durant, M., Jackson, C.R., Kay, A. L., Lane, R.A., Mansour, M., Moore, R., Parry, S., Rudd, A.C., Simpson, M., Facer-Childs, K., Turner, S., Wallbank, J. R., … Wilcox, A. (2023). The enhanced future Flows and Groundwater dataset: development and evaluation of nationally consistent hydrological projections based on UKCP18. In Earth System Science Data (Vol. 15, Issue 6, pp. 2391–2415). Copernicus GmbH. https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-2391-2023
Parry, S., Mackay, J. D., Chitson, T., Hannaford, J., Magee, E., Tanguy, M., Bell, V.A., Facer-Childs, K., Kay, A., Lane, R., Moore, R.J., Turner, S., & Wallbank, J. (2024). Divergent future drought projections in UK river flows and groundwater levels. In Hydrology and Earth System Sciences (Vol. 28, Issue 3, pp. 417–440). Copernicus GmbH. https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-417-2024
Correspondence/contact details
Authors
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4176-9214 Other contacts
Rights holder
UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
Custodian
NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre
info@eidc.ac.uk
Publisher
NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre
info@eidc.ac.uk