Enhancing data completeness in time series: Imputation strategies for missing data using significant periodically correlated components

Read full text
Authors: Asmaa Ahmad, Eric J. Rose, Michael M. Roy, Edward L. Valachovic
Cited by: 0

Abstract

Missing data in periodic time series can bias inference when temporal dependence is not preserved during imputation. We propose a framework that integrates the Variable Bandpass Periodic Block Bootstrap (VBPBB) with multiple imputation using Amelia II by incorporating statistically significant periodic components as auxiliary covariates. Performance was evaluated using simulated missingness in temperature time series data with seasonal structure under a Missing at Random (MAR) mechanism. Imputation accuracy was assessed using Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) and Mean Absolute Error (MAE), comparing Amelia II models with and without VBPBB-derived periodic covariates. Incorporating periodic components reduced RMSE and MAE by approximately 55%, indicating improved reconstruction of seasonal patterns. These results suggest that preserving periodic dependence can enhance imputation performance in time series with strong seasonal structure.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Time Series Analysis and Forecasting

Publication details

Journal / source
PLoS ONE
Volume
21
Issue
7
Pages
e0350666–e0350666
Publication date
6 July 2026
Language
EN