Labeling of the x -axis location is not inclusive, but provides us with a geographical marker in the box considered. The overall positive skew of the distribution of 6-h time periods is captured by the simulation with smoothing as expected from the larger sample size of the simulations. Also the extreme tail of the data (red thin lines extending upward from main portion of the data) is typically better populated as expected from the simulations. Boxes in which 6-h time periods are more prevalent (Florida, South Carolina) show pockets of the blue observed values on the red, long, thin simulated extreme tails. HITS allows the computation of events with potential return periods of 1000 years from the 1000 simulated years. This is in evidence from the extension of the tail relative to the observations.