Distributions of Atmospheric Precipitable Water in Tibet Region Based on MODIS Data during 2001~2009

This paper investigated the spatial and temporal distribution of atmospheric precipitable water(APW) and the connection with natural precipitation in Tibet region using near-infrared monthly MODIS data from 2001 to 2009.Resultsshow that APW is unevenly distributed in Tibet region,APW is gradually decreasing from the southeatern to the northwetern part;APW reached a peak in July and August,and summer APW accounts for 50% of the whole year;APW of 2001~2009 increased in Tibet region,and partial area increased obviously such as Ali,Linzhi and Changdu;APW was negatively related to natural precipitation,with the correlation coefficient-0.688.