Comprehensive evaluation of multi-satellite precipitation products with a dense rain gauge network and optimally merging their simulated hydrological flows using the Bayesian model averaging method

This study first focuses on comprehensive evaluating three widely used satellite precipitation products (TMPA 3B42V6, TMPA 3B42RT, and CMORPH) with a dense rain gauge network in the Mishui basin (9972 km2) in South China and then optimally merge their simulated hydrologic flows with the semi-distributed Xinanjiang model using the Bayesian model averaging method. The initial satellite precipitation data comparisons show that the reanalyzed 3B42V6, with a bias of −4.54%, matched best with the rain gauge observations, while the two near real-time satellite datasets (3B42RT and CMORPH) largely underestimated precipitation by 42.72% and 40.81% respectively. With the model parameters first benchmarked by the rain gauge data, the behavior of the streamflow simulation from the 3B42V6 was also the most optimal amongst the three products, while the two near real-time satellite datasets produced deteriorated biases and Nash–Sutcliffe coefficients (NSCEs). Still, when the model parameters were recalibrated by each individual satellite data, the performance of the streamflow simulations from the two near real-time satellite products were significantly improved, thus demonstrating the need for specific calibrations of the hydrological models for the near real-time satellite inputs. Moreover, when optimally merged with respect to the streamflows forced by the two near real-time satellite precipitation products and all the three satellite precipitation products using the Bayesian model averaging method, the resulted streamflow series further improved and became more robust. In summary, the three current state-of-the-art satellite precipitation products have demonstrated potential in hydrological research and applications. The benchmarking, recalibration, and optimal merging schemes for streamflow simulation at a basin scale described in the present work will hopefully be a reference for future utilizations of satellite precipitation products in global and regional hydrological applications.