Multiscale Complexity Analysis of Rainfall in Northeast Brazil

In this work, we analyze the complexity of monthly rainfall temporal series recorded from 1962 to 2012, at 133 gauge stations in the state of Pernambuco, northeastern Brazil. To this end, we employ the modified multiscale entropy method (MMSE), which is well suited for short time series, to analyze the rainfall regularity across a wide range of temporal scales, from one month to one year. We identify the temporal scales that distinguish rainfall regularity in the inland semiarid Sertao region, the transitional inland Agreste region, and the coastal, tropical humid Zona da Mata region, by comparing the results for stations across the study area and performing statistical significance tests. Our work contributes to the establishment of multiscale methods based on information theory in climatological studies.

Automated summary

This study analyzed the complexity of monthly rainfall temporal series recorded at 133 gauge stations in the state of Pernambuco, northeastern Brazil from 1962 to 2012 using the modified multiscale entropy method. The research identified temporal scales that distinguish rainfall regularity in different regions and contributes to the establishment of multiscale methods based on information theory in climatological studies.