Surface and satellite perspectives on precipitation variability across San Salvador Island, Bahamas

Abstract

Located in the subtropical central-eastern Bahamas, San Salvador Island is impacted by both synoptic-scale weather systems as well as local features and the North Atlantic Subtropical High. This study explores rainfall variability via one year of daily rain gauge observations in relation to daily weather patterns identified from 18 UTC surface analyses. Satellite-derived rainfall estimates are then compared to gauge observations to look at days when gauge data was missing. Though non-synoptic classifications comprised 61.1% of the days and synoptic classifications comprised 38.9% of the days, more rainfall was produced by synoptic days. Unlike other studies done on San Salvador, this study uses multiple observations—in situ, surface analyses, and satellite—to further our understanding of San Salvador’s rainfall. This study also establishes methods to explore synoptic and non-synoptic impacts on the island’s rainfall using additional years as more rain gauge data become available.