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Regional analysis of rainfall extremes of part of Western Ghat, India

The state of Kerala in the southwestern corner of the Indian peninsula is climatically unique in many respects because of the impact of the Western Ghat Mountains. This results in a wide range of climates and the associated marked gradient in the annual total of rainfall which ranges from ~6000 mm at the crest of Western Ghat, to as low as 600 mm in the valley portion. Such a gradient in annual total rainfall is also associated with a wide range of rainfall intensities during storms which can result in extreme flood-producing events that severely affect human society. The study analyses the annual series of precipitation maxima which have been observed within a dense raingauge network covering entire Western Ghat part of Kerala.