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The aim of this study is to present the application of statistical methods to assess the possibility of grouping precipitation according to their elevation above sea level and precipitation levels in the temperate climate of Poland. The country was divided into regions with similar levels of precipitation using cluster analysis by Ward’s method. The study was performed with meteorological data on average monthly precipitation of 53 meteorological stations from 1981 to 2010. The selection of stations was dictated by the need to consider the variability in amounts of annual precipitation throughout the country. The data was used to calculate average annual precipitation total as well as average precipitation total in the summer half-year (from May to October) and the winter half-year (from November to April) for Poland, from 1981 to 2010. Statistical method was performed and six clusters were generated, for the elevation of the stations and average annual precipitation as well as average precipitation for hydrological half-years. The average annual precipitation for the clusters ranged from 530 mm (cluster 5) to 820 mm (cluster 2). The average precipitation for the winter hydrological half-year ranged from 190.1 mm (cluster 1) to 288.8 mm (cluster 5). The average precipitation for the summer hydrological half-year ranged from 326.3 mm (cluster 5) to 605 mm (cluster 2). The conclusions from the analysis carried out in the study are that: (1) grouping by means of Ward’s method can be used to distinguish homogeneous areas with the same levels of precipitation; (2) both precipitation and the elevation, at which meteorological stations are located, are the basis for distinguishing clusters in Ward’s method.

The purpose of the paper is to analyze the spatial variability of precipitation in Poland in the years 1981–2010. The average annual rainfall was 607 mm. Precipitation in Poland is characterized by high spatial and temporal variability. The lowest annual precipitation was recorded in the central part of the country, where they equaled 500 mm. The highest annual precipitation totals were determined in the south, equaling 970 mm. The average precipitation in the summer half-year is 382 mm (63% of the annual total). On the basis of data from 53 climate stations, maps were made of the spatial distribution of precipitation for the period of the year and winter and summer half-year. The kriging method was used to map rainfall distribution in Poland. In the case study, cross-validation was used to compare the prediction performances of three periods. Kriging, with exponential type of semivariogram, gave the best performance in the statistical sense. Their application is justices especially in areas where landform is very complex. In accordance with the assumptions, the mean prediction error (ME), mean standardized prediction error (MSE), and root mean-square standardized prediction error (RMSSE) values are approximately zero, and root-mean-square prediction error (RMSE) and average standard error (ASE) reach values well below 100. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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