Multivariate analysis of climatic patterns of the Meditrranean basin

Climatic data from 444 weather-recording stations in the Mediterranean basin are examined by cluster analysis and principal component analysis. The application of numerical clustering distinguished several groups of climatic stations clearly interpretable in geographic and climatic terms. The hierarchical structure of the dendrograms could be used to identify at different scales uniform climatic regions. The complementary application of principal component analysis produced an ordination of climatic types, which clearly showed the main trends of variation in the precipitation and temperature patterns.