Spatial Interpolation on Rainfall Data over Peninsular Malaysia Using Ordinary Kriging

This study presents the spatial analysis of the rainfall data over Peninsular Malaysia. 70 rainfall stations were utilized in this study. Due to the limited number of rainfall stations, the Ordinary Kriging method which is one of the techniques in Spatial Interpolation was used to estimate the values of the rainfall data and to map their spatial distribution. This spatial analysis was analysed according to the two indices that describe the wet events and another two indices that characterize dry conditions. Large areas at the east experienced high rainfall intensity compared to the areas in the west, northwest and southwest. The small value that has been obtained in Aridity Intensity Index (AII) reflects that the high amount of rainfall in the eastern areas is not contributed by low-intensity events (less than 25th percentile). In terms of number of consecutive dry days, Northwestern areas in Peninsular Malaysia recorded the highest value. This finding explains the occurrence of a large number of floods and soil erosions in the eastern areas.