20 feb 2014 G. SAMBA SIVA

A multivariate approach based on hierarchical cluster analysis has been proposed to study the pattern of rainfall in different mandals of Visakhapatnam district of Andhra Pradesh. The approach was applied to study the rainfall patterns of 42 mandals based on 25 years of rainfall data of Visakhapatnam district from 1986-2010. The application of hierarchical clustering approaches single linkage, complete linkage, average linkage and Ward's minimum variance methods possesses unique characters, which contribute to larger inter procedural differences and results obtained from these methods are unique. The application of these approaches identified medium rainfall (862 mm-1162 mm) was the most frequent representative pattern of rainfall in majority mandals of Visakhapatnam district. The analysis based on multivariate approaches provides useful information about the rainfall patterns that are likely to occur in different regions in different periods.