Preliminary evaluation of precipitation extremes in RCM data for the Rhine basin

A regional GEV model with time-varying parameters is developed for modelling precipitation extremes in transient RCM data. Its application to the RACMO-ECHAM5 simulation for the river Rhine basin for the 1-day maxima in summer and the 5-day maxima in winter is discussed. The estimated GEV parameters for the current climate reasonably correspond to those obtained from available observational data sets. For the summer season a significant increase in the dispersion coefficient (ratio between the scale and location parameters) is found in the RCM simulation. In the winter season there is a significant increase in the location parameter and a tendency of a decrease in the shape parameter.