The accuracy of measuring precipitation with a rain gauge network

The main purpose of this technical meeting of the Committee for Hydrological Research TNO, is to report on the use of radar for precipitation measurements. In practice, areal precipitation is at the moment mainly determined by rain-gauge measure­ments at individual points. The aim of this paper is to discuss the accuracy which this method may yield. 
Firstly, the instrumental errors of a rain-gauge proper are described. Secondly, the spatial variability of a precipitation field is discussed. Thirdly, a theoretical approach of the problem is given and, lastly, some results are shown of experiments carried out with a relatively dense network of rain-gauges.