. Remote and Autonomous Measurements of Precipitation in Antarctica

Abstract
Year-round measurements of precipitation have been ongoing at four locations on the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica. The measurements are being made by low-power, autonomous Antarctic Precipitation Systems (APSs) installed in December 2017 as a part of the United States Antarctic Program (USAP). The precipitation is being measured using an Ott Pluvio2 weighing precipitation gauge installed inside a double-alter wind shield. Additional observations, such as snow height, wind speed, particle counts, and videos, are included in the APS sites to provide supporting measurements. The goals of the project are to develop the ability to measure precipitation in Antarctica and further evaluate the surface mass balance as well as to assess numerical weather prediction and climate model precipitation estimates. This presentation will provide an overview of the precipitation measurement systems and the initial analyses of studying event-by-event accumulation of precipitation at the four sites in comparison to the numerical model results of liquid-water-equivalent precipitation.