Satellite precipitation AND Evapotranspiration estimation over the South American Andean Plateau (Altiplano)

During the last decades, the South American Andean Plateau water resources is facing unprecedented pressure due to the combination of climate variability and agricultural activities increase. However, the available meteorological gauge network is too sparse in time and space to adequately understand and prevent ongoing change. In this context, this study aimed at the validation of newly released CHIRPS rainfall and GLEAM potential evapotranspiration (ETp) products for the 1981-2012 period. by comparing them with in situ data. The results show that CHIRPS and GLEAM provide consistent precipitation and evapotranspiration estimates at the regional. Even if some inconsistencies are highlighted at the local scale (especially for GLEAM) these dataset offer a great opportunity toward a sustainable water use management.