Earth Science

GPM

2,799 tracked publications and 51,965 citations from 2014–2026. Global Precipitation Measurement Core Observatory. Launched 2014. Life-cycle cost: $1.6B in 2025 dollars. Active Mission Window April 1, 2014 to January 1, 2024: 1,706 publications, 201 top-10% credit.

Orbiter · h-index 88 · 67 papers with 100+ citations · prime mission ended 2017


Lifetime

Scope Papers published from the first full month after science operations begin through 2 years after the mission ends. Citations are counted through the third calendar year after each paper appears. Methods Papers published from the first full month after science operations begin through 2 years after the prime mission ends. Citations are counted through the third calendar year after each paper appears. Methods Every tracked publication to date, with every citation to date. Methods

Key measures

Active Mission Window · papers April 1, 2014 to January 1, 2024
Tracked publicationsTracked publications: peer-reviewed research papers we found for the mission. The list may not be complete. Methods1,706
CitationsCitations received by the tracked publications in the selected scope. The two windowed scopes count each paper’s citations only within its citation window. Methods26,590
Mean citations per publicationMean citations: total citations divided by tracked publications in the selected scope. One blockbuster paper can lift it. Methods16
Median citations per publicationMedian citations: the middle paper’s citation count in the selected scope; half the papers have more, half fewer. A single blockbuster sways it less than the mean. Methods10
Uncited publicationsUncited publications: papers with no citations in the selected scope. Methods48 (2.8%)
Top-10% creditTop 10%: among the 10% most-cited papers from this division’s missions, ranked against papers published around the same time. A paper naming several missions is split evenly among the missions in this division that claim it, so counts can be fractional. Methods201 · 5.2% of division
Top-1% creditTop 1%: among the 1% most-cited papers from this division’s missions within the selected window. Not adjusted for publication year. A paper naming several missions is split evenly among the missions in this division that claim it, so counts can be fractional. Methods25 · 6.5% of division
Lifetime indices · every tracked publication to date, in any scope
h-indexh-index: the largest h such that h papers have at least h citations each. It only grows with time, so older missions score higher. Methods88
g-indexg-index: the largest g for which the g most-cited papers together hold at least g² citations. Like the h-index, but it lets the most-cited papers count for more. Methods144
m-index, as of October 4, 2026m-index: a mission’s h-index divided by the years since its first peer-reviewed paper. It falls every 1 January even when nothing else changes, so it belongs to the date shown; it also discounts the long operating life that larger missions paid for. Methods6.8
toritori (total research impact, from ADS): for every paper citing one of the mission’s papers, 1 divided by the citing paper’s reference count times the cited paper’s author count, summed, with self-citations removed. It favors citations from papers with short reference lists and from outside the mission’s own authors. Computed over the tracked citation graph, which can be slightly incomplete. Methods168
riqriq (research impact quotient): 1,000 times the square root of tori, divided by the years since the mission’s first paper. A rate, not a total, so it does not keep growing with age the way the h-index and tori do. Methods924

Tracked publications

  1. The Global Precipitation Measurement Mission

    Hou, Arthur Y., 2014, BAMS

    2,204 citations

  2. The Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Mission for Science and Society

    Skofronick-Jackson, Gail, 2017, BAMS

    647 citations

  3. Daily evaluation of 26 precipitation datasets using Stage-IV gauge-radar data for the CONUS

    Beck, Hylke E., 2019, HESS

    483 citations

  4. Evaluation of GPM Day-1 IMERG and TMPA Version-7 legacy products over Mainland China at multiple spatiotemporal scales

    Tang, Guoqiang, 2016, JHyd

    468 citations

  5. Have satellite precipitation products improved over last two decades? A comprehensive comparison of GPM IMERG with nine satellite and reanalysis datasets

    Tang, Guoqiang, 2020, RSEnv

    451 citations

  6. Ground validation of GPM IMERG and TRMM 3B42V7 rainfall products over southern Tibetan Plateau based on a high-density rain gauge network

    Xu, Ran, 2017, JGRD

    347 citations

  7. Assessment of GPM-IMERG and Other Precipitation Products against Gauge Data under Different Topographic and Climatic Conditions in Iran: Preliminary Results

    Sharifi, Ehsan, 2016, RemS

    299 citations

  8. Evaluation of 18 satellite- and model-based soil moisture products using in situ measurements from 826 sensors

    Beck, Hylke E., 2021, HESS

    270 citations

  9. Review of GPM IMERG performance: A global perspective

    Pradhan, Rajani K., 2022, RSEnv

    258 citations

  10. Inroads of remote sensing into hydrologic science during the WRR era

    Lettenmaier, Dennis P., 2015, WRR

    256 citations

  11. A Global High Resolution Mesoscale Convective System Database Using Satellite Derived Cloud Tops, Surface Precipitation, and Tracking

    Feng, Zhe, 2021, JGRD

    254 citations

  12. Temporal and spatial evaluation of satellite-based rainfall estimates across the complex topographical and climatic gradients of Chile

    Zambrano-Bigiarini, Mauricio, 2017, HESS

    239 citations

  13. A preliminary assessment of GPM-based multi-satellite precipitation estimates over a monsoon dominated region

    Prakash, Satya, 2018, JHyd

    232 citations

  14. The Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Microwave Imager (GMI): Instrument Overview and Early On-Orbit Performance

    Draper, David W., 2015, IJSTA

    230 citations

  15. From TRMM to GPM: How well can heavy rainfall be detected from space?

    Prakash, Satya, 2016, AdWR

    225 citations

  16. On the performance of satellite precipitation products in riverine flood modeling: A review

    Maggioni, Viviana, 2018, JHyd

    213 citations

  17. Statistical and Hydrological Comparisons between TRMM and GPM Level-3 Products over a Midlatitude Basin: Is Day-1 IMERG a Good Successor for TMPA 3B42V7?

    Tang, Guoqiang, 2016, JHyMe

    209 citations

  18. Evaluation of the GPM IMERG satellite-based precipitation products and the hydrological utility

    Wang, Zhaoli, 2017, AtmRe

    209 citations

  19. Global View Of Real-Time Trmm Multisatellite Precipitation Analysis: Implications For Its Successor Global Precipitation Measurement Mission

    Yong, Bin, 2015, BAMS

    207 citations

  20. Comparison of GPM IMERG, TMPA 3B42 and PERSIANN-CDR satellite precipitation products over Malaysia

    Tan, Mou Leong, 2018, AtmRe

    207 citations

How we found these papers

We searched NASA’s Astrophysics Data System (ADS) for peer-reviewed articles naming GPM in the title, abstract or keywords; standard filters drop articles that are not peer-reviewed and magazine pieces. SciX is ADS’s current interface.

(((abs:IMERG AND abs:(precipitation OR rainfall OR satellite)) OR =abs:"Global Precipitation Measurement" OR (abs:GPM AND (abs:(precipitation OR rainfall OR satellite OR DPR OR GMI OR IMERG) OR =abs:"Core Observatory" OR =abs:"Microwave Imager") NOT (=abs:"gas-permeable membrane" OR =abs:"Glaciar Perito Moreno" OR =abs:"groundwater potential" OR =abs:"gamma-pareto quantile mapping" OR =abs:"grid-preprocessed mosaicking" OR =abs:"Gauss pseudospectral" OR =abs:"Gaussian plume model")) OR =abs:"GPM Microwave Imager" OR (=abs:"Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar" AND abs:(satellite OR GPM OR spaceborne) NOT abs:(FY-3G OR FY3G)) OR (abs:GMI AND abs:(precipitation OR rainfall OR microwave) NOT (=abs:"Global Modeling Initiative" OR =abs:"giant magnetoimpedance" OR =abs:"giant magneto-impedance" OR =abs:"gradient meteorological instrument" OR (abs:global AND abs:Moran))) OR (abs:DPR AND abs:(precipitation AND (satellite OR spaceborne OR GPM)) NOT =abs:"DPR Korea"))) AND property:refereed AND doctype:article AND pubdate:[2014-04 TO 2040-01] AND NOT bibstem:("A&R" OR "AIASJ" OR "AeAm" OR "AirSp" OR "AsNow" OR "AsUAI" OR "AvWST" OR "C&E" OR "C&T" OR "CAPJ" OR "E&S" OR "ENews" OR "IrAJ" OR "JCos" OR "JRASC" OR "LAstr" OR "MNSSA" OR "Met" OR "NewSc" OR "Orion" OR "PhT" OR "PhTea" OR "PhuZ" OR "PhyOJ" OR "PhyW" OR "PlR" OR "SciAm" OR "SpFl" OR "ZemVs")

Open in SciX

Removed after review (1)

  1. Assessing the impact of pre-GPM microwave precipitation observations in the Goddard WRF ensemble data assimilation system Written before GPM launched; uses earlier satellites' data to anticipate the mission. Decision 🤖