Abstract The collection efficiency of a typical precipitation gauge-shield configuration decreases with increasing wind speed, with a high scatter for a given wind speed. The high scatter in the collection efficiency for a given wind speed arises in part from the variability in the characteristics of falling snow and atmospheric turbulence. This study uses weighing gauge data collected at the Marshall Field Site near Boulder, Colorado, during the WMO Solid Precipitation Intercomparison Experiment (SPICE). Particle diameter and fall speed data from a laser disdrometer were used to show that the scatter in the collection efficiency can be reduced by considering the fall speed of solid precipitation particles. The collection efficiency was divided into two classes depending on the measured mean-event particle fall speed during precipitation events. Slower-falling particles were associated with a lower collection efficiency. A new transfer function (i.e., the relationship between collection efficiency and other meteorological variables, such as wind speed or air temperature) that includes the fall speed of the hydrometeors was developed. The root-mean-square error of the adjusted precipitation with the new transfer function with respect to a weighing gauge placed in a double fence intercomparison reference was lower than using previously developed transfer functions that only consider wind speed and air temperature. This shows that the measured fall speed of solid precipitation with a laser disdrometer accounts for a large amount of the observed scatter in weighing gauge collection efficiency.

Abstract Accurate snowfall measurement is challenging because it depends on the precipitation gauge used, meteorological conditions, and the precipitation microphysics. Upstream of weighing gauges, the flow field is disturbed by the gauge and any shielding used usually creates an updraft, which deflects solid precipitation from falling in the gauge, resulting in significant undercatch. Wind shields are often used with weighing gauges to reduce this updraft, and transfer functions are required to adjust the snowfall measurements to consider gauge undercatch. Using these functions reduces the bias in precipitation measurement but not the root-mean-square error (RMSE). In this study, the accuracy of the Hotplate precipitation gauge was compared to standard unshielded and shielded weighing gauges collected during the WMO Solid Precipitation Intercomparison Experiment program. The analysis performed in this study shows that the Hotplate precipitation gauge bias after wind correction is near zero and similar to wind corrected weighing gauges. The RMSE of the Hotplate precipitation gauge measurements is lower than weighing gauges (with or without an Alter shield) for wind speeds up to 5 m s −1 , the wind speed limit at which sufficient data were available. This study shows that the Hotplate precipitation gauge measurement has a low bias and RMSE due to its aerodynamic shape, making its performance mostly independent of the type of solid precipitation.