This specification defines the Level 3 functional and performance requirements for NASA’s Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission Ground Validation System (GVS). Overall, the GPM mission has defined a series of scientific objectives which include improvement in predicting terrestrial weather, climate, and hydrometeorology through a better observational understanding of the global water cycle. The purpose of the GPM GVS is rooted in the need for independent and objective evaluation of the precipitation products generated by the GPM mission. For its part, the GVS provides an independent means of evaluation, diagnosis, and ultimately improvement of the GPM spaceborne measurements and precipitation retrievals. These goals are more completely defined as follows:

• Evaluation—Quantify the uncertainties in GPM standard precipitation retrieval algorithms
• Diagnosis—Understand the time and space error characteristics of GPM precipitation products generated by these algorithms, and
• Improvement—Contribute to the improvement of GPM precipitation retrieval algorithms throughout the mission.

Achieving these goals is seen as a necessary step for improved GPM data products and for increased utilization of these products in Global Climate Models (GCMs), Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) models, and hydrometeorological models for climate and weather forecasting.