Using the seasonal and temporal precipitation concentration index for characterizing the monthly rainfall distribution in Spain

The concentration of the rainfall in a year is an important aspect of the climate. An unbalanced distribution of rainfall evokes periods of rainfall excess and periods of drought which make plant and crop growth difficult. Rainfall concentration needs to be considered in the assessment and the prediction of soil losses by water erosion. A statistical derived index, known as the Precipitation Concentration Index is presented to be used in quantifying the relative distribution of the rainfall patterns. Based on the available data sets, two different calculation procedures were used for deriving the Precipitation Concentration Index (Seasonal and Temporal). The application of the two procedures on the rainfall data of two meteorological stations from different climatological regions revealed how the two methods can be used in quantifying the seasonal and temporal concentration of the rainfall. The rainfall data from meteorological stations situated in a central transect of Spain were used in this investigation. From the observed results, it can be concluded that in the Southern part of the transect, the concentration of the rainfall is not a seasonal effect (not strongly confined by a typical dry or wet period) but a temporal effect (bounded to the unreliable, unpredictable character of the rainfall).

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