On the estimation of annual and monthly mean values of air temperature over Greece using stepwise multiple regression analysis

Abstract

Annual and monthly mean air temperatures at over sixty stations in Greece are compared with the three factors of latitude, longitude and altitude by means of stepwise multiple regression. The validity of the assumption that there is a linear relationship between the mean air temperature values and the three factors is examined. A seasonal variation was evident in all the computed temperature gradients with altitude effects being at a maximum in the summer while the effects of latitude were most pronounced in the cold season. The empirical formulae produced do not account completely for all the systematic features of the data but the resultant correlation coefficients range from 0.855 to 0.962. The residuals between actual and calculated temperatures are shown and their use in deriving temperatures at places other than meteorological stations is discussed.