Average Annual Precipitation, New York State, 1961-1990

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Identification_Information

Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Chris Daly, Spatial Climate Analysis Service
Originator: George Taylor, the Oregon Climate Service at Oregon State University
Publication_Date: 200009
Title: Average Annual Precipitation, New York State, 1961-1990
Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: vector digital data
Publication_Information:
Publication_Place: Corvallis, OR, USA
Publisher: Spatial Climate Analysis Service, Oregon State University; USDA - NRCS National Water and Climate Center, Portland, Oregon; USDA - NRCS National Cartography and Geospatial Center, Fort Worth, Texas
Online_Linkage: https://cugir.library.cornell.edu/catalog/cugir-007318
Description:
Abstract: This data set shows polygons of average annual precipitation in New York State, for the climatological period 1961-1990. Parameter-elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model (PRISM) derived raster data is the underlying data set from which the polygons and vectors were created. PRISM is an analytical model that uses point data and a digital elevation model (DEM) to generate gridded estimates of annual, monthly and event-based climatic parameters.
Purpose: These data are intended for geographic display and analysis at the national level, and for large regional areas. The data should be displayed and analyzed at scales appropriate for 1:2,000,000-scale data. No responsibility is assumed by the Spatial Climate Analysis Service, the USDA - NRCS National Water and Climate Center, the USDA - NRCS National Cartography and Geospatial Center, or the U.S. Geological Survey in the use of these data.
Supplemental_Information: There are many methods of interpolating precipitation from monitoring stations to grid points. Some provide estimates of acceptable accuracy in flat terrain, but few have been able to adequately explain the extreme, complex variations in precipitation that occur in mountainous regions. Significant progress in this area has been achieved through the development of PRISM (Parameter-elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model). PRISM is an analytical model that uses point data and a digital elevation model (DEM) to generate gridded estimates of monthly and annual precipitation (as well as other climatic parameters). PRISM is well suited to regions with mountainous terrain, because it incorporates a conceptual framework that addresses the spatial scale and pattern of precipitation in such regions. Detailed descriptions of the PRISM raster data can be found on the Oregon State University PRISM web page at <http://www.ocs.orst.edu/prism>. Additional information is available through the Natural Resources Conservation Service web pages at the National Water and Climate Center at <http://www.wcc.nrcs.usda.gov/water/climate/prism/prism.html> or through the National Cartography and Geospatial Center at <http://www.ftw.nrcs.usda.gov/prism/prismdata.html>. Other source PRISM data sets are also available in Arc/INFO coverage and Arc/INFO ASCII GRID formats from the Spatial Climate Analysis Service. See <http://www.ocs.orst.edu/prism/prism_products.html> for more information. The source PRISM data is packaged on 3 CD-ROM's covering the Lower 48 United States and is available from NRCS for $50 per CD-ROM. The 48 States are broken into three regions: East, Central and West. Each CD contains the annual and monthly precipitation coverages, as well as the gridded data. The CD-ROM's may be ordered through <http://www.ftw.nrcs.usda.gov/prism/prismdata.html>.
Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Range_of_Dates/Times:
Beginning_Date: 1961
Ending_Date: 1990
Currentness_Reference: ground condition
Status:
Progress: Complete
Maintenance_and_Update_Frequency: No updates are planned for the 1961-1990 climatological period. However, a similar data set will probably be produced in 2001 for the 1971-2000 climatological period.
Spatial_Domain:
Bounding_Coordinates:
West_Bounding_Coordinate: -79.763235
East_Bounding_Coordinate: -71.870161
North_Bounding_Coordinate: 45.006138
South_Bounding_Coordinate: 40.506003
Keywords:
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: None
Theme_Keyword: Precipitation
Theme_Keyword: Climate
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: LCSH
Theme_Keyword: Rain and rainfall
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: ISO 19115 Topic Category
Theme_Keyword: climatologyMeteorologyAtmosphere
Theme_Keyword: environment
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: CUGIR Category
Theme_Keyword: climate
Theme_Keyword: environment
Place:
Place_Keyword_Thesaurus: LCSH
Place_Keyword: New York (State)
Access_Constraints: None.
Use_Constraints: None. Acknowledgement of the PRISM model, the Spatial Climate Analysis Service at Oregon State University, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Water and Climate Center, the NRCS National Cartography and Geospatial Center (NCGC), and (or) the National Atlas of the United States would be appreciated in products derived from these data.
Point_of_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization: Spatial Climate Analysis Service
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing and physical address
Address: 316 Strand Agricultural Hall, Oregon State University
City: Corvallis
State_or_Province: Oregon
Postal_Code: 97331-2202
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 541-737-5705
Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 541-737-5710
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: oregon@oce.orst.edu
Browse_Graphic:
Browse_Graphic_File_Name: https://cugir-data.s3.amazonaws.com/00/73/18/preview.png
Browse_Graphic_File_Description: preview of the dataset
Browse_Graphic_File_Type: PNG
Native_Data_Set_Environment: Windows NT Version 4.0 (Build 1381) Service Pack 4; ESRI Arc/INFO 8.0.345

Data_Quality_Information

Attribute_Accuracy:
Attribute_Accuracy_Report: Point estimates of precipitation from the U.S. National 1961-1990 Climate Normals were subjected to manual quality control checks by the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC). PRISM precipitation estimates were reviewed by the PRISM Evaluation Group, a panel of climatologists, meteorologists, and hydrologists. The task of this group was to assess the assumptions made by the model and compare model output with the best available precipitation maps from several western States. The group found that the PRISM maps equaled or exceeded the accuracy of the best maps available.
Logical_Consistency_Report: Precipitation data were derived from two main sources, NCDC Climate Normals and NRCS Cooperative Snow Survey Data (SNOTEL). In general, NCDC stations are located at low elevations and in valley bottoms, and encompass the entire United States. SNOTEL stations are located primarily at high elevations in the western United States. Polygon and chain-node topology are present. Checks were made to ensure that no two adjacent polygons are labeled with the same precipitation value. A manual spot check was made of peaks, depressions, and islands.
Completeness_Report: This data set includes observations and interpolated values for the 48 contiguous United States and the District of Columbia, for the climatological period 1961-1990. This data set is a compilation of the best available data from the various data sources.
Lineage:
Source_Information:
Source_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Spatial Climate Analysis Service, Oregon State University
Publication_Date: 1998
Title: Parameter-elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model (PRISM)
Publication_Information:
Publication_Place: Corvallis, OR, USA
Publisher: Spatial Climate Analysis Service
Type_of_Source_Media: proprietary software
Source_Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Range_of_Dates/Times:
Beginning_Date: 1994
Ending_Date: 1998
Source_Currentness_Reference: publication date
Source_Citation_Abbreviation: PRISM
Source_Contribution: PRISM was used to create gridded estimates of precipitation from point observations and digital elevation model data. For a more detailed description of the PRISM process, see <http://www.ocs.orst.edu/prism/gen_toc.html>.
Source_Information:
Source_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Spatial Climate Analysis Service, Oregon State University
Publication_Date: 1998
Title: Gaussian Filter
Publication_Information:
Publication_Place: Corvallis, OR, USA
Publisher: Spatial Climate Analysis Service
Type_of_Source_Media: proprietary software
Source_Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Range_of_Dates/Times:
Beginning_Date: 1994
Ending_Date: 1998
Source_Currentness_Reference: publication date
Source_Citation_Abbreviation: FILTER
Source_Contribution: The Gaussian filter was used to change the resolution of raster data from 4 km to 2 km. The Gaussian filter was implemented as custom software written in FORTRAN. For information about Gaussian filters see: Barnes, Stanley L., 1964; A Technique for Maximizing Details in Numerical Weather Map Analysis. Journal of Applied Meteorology, 3, 396- 409.
Source_Information:
Source_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: National Climatic Data Center (NCDC)
Publication_Date: 1991
Title: U.S. National 1961-1990 Climate Normals, Climatography of the United States No. 81 - Monthly Normals
Publication_Information:
Publication_Place: Asheville, NC, USA
Publisher: National Climatic Data Center
Other_Citation_Details: For more information on this source, please see <http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/ol/climate/research/normals/us/normals_clim81.html>.
Type_of_Source_Media: online database
Source_Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Range_of_Dates/Times:
Beginning_Date: 19610101
Ending_Date: 19901231
Source_Currentness_Reference: ground condition
Source_Citation_Abbreviation: CLIM81
Source_Contribution: Location and values of known average annual precipitation.
Source_Information:
Source_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
Publication_Date: 1991
Title: Cooperative Snow Survey Data of Federal-State-Private Cooperative Snow Surveys (SNOTEL)
Series_Information:
Series_Name: Cooperative Snow Survey Data of Federal-State-Private Cooperative Snow Surveys
Issue_Identification: Annual issue for Western US states
Publication_Information:
Publication_Place: Portland, OR, USA
Publisher: Natural Resources Conservation Service
Other_Citation_Details: For more information on this source, please see <http://www.wcc.nrcs.usda.gov/water/w_data.html>.
Type_of_Source_Media: database, paper, and online
Source_Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Range_of_Dates/Times:
Beginning_Date: 19610101
Ending_Date: 19901231
Source_Currentness_Reference: ground condition
Source_Citation_Abbreviation: SNOTEL
Source_Contribution: Location and values of known average monthly and annual precipitation.
Source_Information:
Source_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Natural Resources Conservation Service, National Water and Climate Center
Publication_Date: Unpublished material
Title: Local precipitation monitoring networks
Type_of_Source_Media: digital files
Source_Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Range_of_Dates/Times:
Beginning_Date: 19610101
Ending_Date: 19901231
Source_Currentness_Reference: ground condition
Source_Citation_Abbreviation: LOCAL
Source_Contribution: Location and values of known average annual precipitation.
Source_Information:
Source_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Defense Mapping Agency
Publication_Date: 1985
Title: 1:250,000-scale Digital Elevation Models (DEM)
Publication_Information:
Publication_Place: Washington, DC
Publisher: U.S. Geological Survey
Type_of_Source_Media: digital files
Source_Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Single_Date/Time:
Calendar_Date: 1985
Source_Currentness_Reference: publication date
Source_Citation_Abbreviation: DEM
Source_Contribution: Terrain surface input to the PRISM model for estimation of precipitation between known points.
Source_Information:
Source_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: U.S. Geological Survey
Publication_Date: 1999
Title: State Boundaries of the United States
Publication_Information:
Publication_Place: Reston, VA
Publisher: U.S. Geological Survey
Type_of_Source_Media: online
Source_Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Single_Date/Time:
Calendar_Date: 1999
Source_Currentness_Reference: publication date
Source_Citation_Abbreviation: Atlas-ST
Source_Contribution: This file was used to determine the boundary of the data included.
Process_Step:
Process_Description: The DEM resolution was changed to 4 km using the Gaussian filter.
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: DEM
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: FILTER
Process_Date: 199804
Process_Step:
Process_Description: All the station data was combined into one master data set.
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: CLIM81
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: SNOTEL
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: LOCAL
Process_Date: 199804
Process_Step:
Process_Description: Data from CLIM81, SNOTEL, and LOCAL were incorporated into the PRISM model and combined with the DEM to produce the initial 4 km-resolution PRISM model output.
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: PRISM
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: DEM
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: CLIM81
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: SNOTEL
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: LOCAL
Process_Date: 199804
Process_Step:
Process_Description: The PRISM model output was converted from 4 km to 2 km using a Gaussian filter.
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: FILTER
Process_Date: 199804
Process_Step:
Process_Description: The 2 km raster data was contoured using Arc/INFO.
Process_Date: 199804
Process_Step:
Process_Description: Adjacent isohyets were converted to areas or polygons using a custom- designed macro (AML) in Arc/INFO.
Process_Date: 199804
Process_Step:
Process_Description: The coverage was created by the Spatial Climate Analysis Service using custom software. The Natural Resources Conservation Service, National Cartography and Geospatial Center edited the file in Arc/INFO to match the coastlines and boundaries (Atlas-ST) from the National Atlas of the United States. The data were converted to shapefile format for inclusion in the National Atlas of the United States.
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation: Atlas-ST
Process_Date: 200002
Process_Step:
Process_Description: In order to geoprocess spatial files for New York State from the National Atlas Data for distribution in CUGIR, the nationwide data files were added to a map document in ArcInfo 8.2. Using the geoprocessing wizard's clip function, the spatial files were clipped to the detailed New York polygon.
Process_Date: 200012

Spatial_Data_Organization_Information

Direct_Spatial_Reference_Method: Vector
Point_and_Vector_Object_Information:
SDTS_Terms_Description:
SDTS_Point_and_Vector_Object_Type: G-polygon
Point_and_Vector_Object_Count: 133

Spatial_Reference_Information

Horizontal_Coordinate_System_Definition:
Geographic:
Latitude_Resolution: 0.02083333
Longitude_Resolution: 0.02083333
Geographic_Coordinate_Units: Decimal degrees
Geodetic_Model:
Horizontal_Datum_Name: North American Datum of 1983
Ellipsoid_Name: GRS1980
Semi-major_Axis: 6378137.0
Denominator_of_Flattening_Ratio: 298.257222

Entity_and_Attribute_Information

Entity_Type:
Entity_Type_Label: Area of equal average annual precipitation (described by prismp020.dbf)
Entity_Type_Definition: Each polygon represents an area with a constant value for the average annual precipitation, as determined by the PRISM model.
Entity_Type_Definition_Source: Spatial Climate Analysis Service PRISM Project
Attributes:
Name Description Values
Shape The representation of the entity in the data. coded values
Area The size of the shape in coverage units. 0.00000 to 115.09402
Perimeter The perimeter of the shape in coverage units. 0.00647 to 874.33448
Prism0p020 Internal feature number. 2 to 6244
Range The average annual precipitation. 0.000 to 200.000 inches

Distribution_Information

Distributor:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization: Albert R. Mann Library
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing and physical
Address: Cornell University
City: Ithaca
State_or_Province: New York
Postal_Code: 14853
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 607-255-5406
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: mann-ref@cornell.edu
Distribution_Liability: Cornell University provides these geographic data "as is". Cornell University makes no guarantee or warranty concerning the accuracy of information contained in the geographic data. Cornell University further makes no warranty either expressed or implied, regarding the condition of the product or its fitness for any particular purpose. The burden for determining fitness for use lies entirely with the user. Although these files have been processed successfully on computers at Cornell University, no warranty is made by Cornell University regarding the use of these data on any other system, nor does the fact of distribution constitute or imply any such warranty.
Standard_Order_Process:
Digital_Form:
Digital_Transfer_Information:
Format_Name: Shapefile
Format_Information_Content: zipped shapefile
File_Decompression_Technique: zip
Transfer_Size: 0.16
Digital_Transfer_Option:
Online_Option:
Computer_Contact_Information:
Network_Address:
Digital_Form:
Digital_Transfer_Information:
Format_Name: metadata
Format_Information_Content: FGDC XML metadata
Digital_Transfer_Option:
Online_Option:
Computer_Contact_Information:
Network_Address:
Digital_Form:
Digital_Transfer_Information:
Format_Name: HTML metadata
Format_Information_Content: FGDC HTML metadata
Digital_Transfer_Option:
Online_Option:
Computer_Contact_Information:
Network_Address:
Digital_Form:
Digital_Transfer_Information:
Format_Name: KML
Format_Information_Content: generated KML, via WFS
Digital_Transfer_Option:
Online_Option:
Digital_Form:
Digital_Transfer_Information:
Format_Name: GeoJSON
Format_Information_Content: generated GeoJSON, via WFS
Digital_Transfer_Option:
Online_Option:
Digital_Form:
Digital_Transfer_Information:
Format_Name: OGC:WMS
Format_Information_Content: WMS, from GeoServer
Digital_Transfer_Option:
Online_Option:
Fees: None

Metadata_Reference_Information

Metadata_Date: 20190524
Metadata_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization: Albert R. Mann Library
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing and physical
Address: Albert R. Mann Library
City: Ithaca
State_or_Province: New York
Postal_Code: 14853
Country: USA
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 607-255-5406
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: mann-ref@cornell.edu
Metadata_Standard_Name: FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata
Metadata_Standard_Version: FGDC-STD-001-1998
Metadata_Time_Convention: local time