CHIRPS FAQ

CHIRPS FAQ's

Where can I get CHIRPS data?

     in a browser go to,
     ftp://chg-ftpout.geog.ucsb.edu/pub/org/chg/products/CHIRPS-latest/
     or equivalently,     tinyurl.com/chg-chirps
     .
     via anonymous ftp,
     ftp chg-ftpout.geog.ucsb.edu
     username: anonymous 
     password: your_email_address
     cd  /pub/org/chg/products/CHIRPS-latest/

What is the spatial resolution of CHIRPS?

     Chirps is produced at 0.05 x 0.05 degree spatial resolution
     For daily Africa data we also provide a 2.5 x 2.5 degree spatial resolution product

What are the spatial domain available for CHIRPS?

     Global         50N-50S, 180E-180W  @0.05 deg resolution = maps 7200x2000 pixels
     Africa         40N-40S   20E-55W   @0.05 deg resolution = maps 1500x1600 pixels
     CAmer-Carib    efdfdffgggerg1234 346y 

What are the time steps available for CHIRPS?

     pentad
     dekad
     monthly
     daily   (for Africa)

What are the file formats available for CHIRPS?

     .tif
     .bil

What units is CHIRPS in?

      Total mm for given time step, mm/pentad, mm/month, etc.

What value is used for Bad Values?

     -9999  

What is the latency of the CHIRPS product?

     There is a rapid, gts-only, CHIRPS available 2 days after the end of a pentad
     Final CHIRPS (all station data) is available sometime after the 15th of the following month. 

What is the temporal range for CHIRPS?

     CHIRPS is available from 1981 to near-real time
     The first couple of years are of lesser quality due to large gaps in the B1 IR data for that time period. 
     People using CHIRPS for hydrological modeling may choose to start later than 1981.

Who do I contact with CHIRPS questions?

     Pete Peterson
     pete@geog.ucsb.edu

How was CHIRPS funded?

Who uses CHIRPS?

How good is CHIRPS?

     It depends on the questions you are asking. 
     For Seasonal Drought monitoring and Trend Analysis, CHIRPS is very good compared with other rainfall datasets.

How do I reference CHIRPS in publications?

     Funk, C.C., Peterson, P.J., Landsfeld, M.F., Pedreros, D.H., Verdin, J.P.,
     Rowland, J.D., Romero, B.E., Husak, G.J., Michaelsen, J.C., and Verdin, A.P., 
     2014, A quasi-global precipitation time series for drought monitoring: U.S.
     Geological Survey Data Series 832, 4 p.