Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 2.1.
Distribution of climatological stations in which total precipitation amount
and duration of sunshine are recorded (data source: Météo-France)
Trying to reproduce a continuous series in space has proved to be a more
complicated task than was first thought. Climatological data are recorded on the
Earth's surface through networks of meteorological stations. However, the density
of these stations depends on the country and regions in which they are located, as
well as on the variables that are to be studied. For example, in mainland France the
average distance between climatological stations that record rainfall is 13 km, the
average distance between those that record temperature is 20 km, and for those that
record duration of sunshine this distance is 70 km. Figure 2.1 shows that spatial
sampling tends to be irregular (the region of Paris is over-represented), and varies
depending on the climate factor in question. For example there are 3,165
climatological stations that record rainfall, 1,530 climatological stations that record
temperature, and 115 climatological stations that record duration of sunshine. This
irregular distribution of climatological stations is partly a result of the complexity of
the different environments in which the climatological stations are located. In
addition to this, the irregular distribution of these climatological stations can also be
linked to the importance that is given to a particular climatic factor that needs to be
investigated, to their spatial variability, or also to the cost of the stations required to
record the data.
