A Precipitation-based Regionalization in Western Iran using Principal Component Analysis and Cluster Analysis

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Research Scientist of Soil Conservation and Watershed Management Research Institute, Tehran, Iran

2 Associate Professor, Department of Physical Geography, University of Tehran, Iran

Abstract

In the present study western Iran has been  regionalized based on 10 factors in 170 stations using principal component analysis (PCA) and Cluster Analysis (CA). In this way, all 10 factors were reduced to 4 principal components and then rotated using Varimax rotation criterion. Applying Ward’s Algorithm, a Hierarchical Cluster Analysis, on principal component scores, the stations were grouped into 5 individual clusters. The results indicated that the study area comprises of 5 distinctive homogenous subdivisions. Topography and latitude play an important role in determining boundaries between identified subdivisions and existence of spatial differences between them as well.
 

References

حیدری، حسن و بهلول علیجانی، 1378، طبقه بندی اقلیمی ایران با استفاده از تکنیک‌های آماری چند متغیره، پژوهشهای جغرافیایی، شماره 37، 74-57.
Dinpashoh, Y, Fakheri-Fard, A., Moghaddam, M,  Jahanbakhsh, S and Mirnia, M. (2004). Selection of variables for the purpose of regionalization of Iran’s precipitation climate using multivariate methods.  Journal of Hydrology 297, pp. 109–123
Domroes, M., Kaviani, M and Schaefer, D. (1998), An Analysis of Regional and Intra-annual Precipitation Variability over Iran using Multivariate Statistical Methods. Theor. Appl. Climatol. 61, pp.151±159
Ehrendorfer, M. (1987), A regionalisation of Austria’s precipitation climate using principal component analysis, J. Climatol. 7: pp. 71–89.
Iran-Water Resources Research
Volume 3, Issue 2
June 2007
Pages 62-65

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 19 August 2006
  • Revise Date: 12 February 2007
  • Accept Date: 27 May 2007

Share

How to cite

Statistics