A Polarimetric Radar Forward Operator for Model Evaluation

A polarimetric radar forward operator has been developed as a tool for the systematic evaluation of microphysical parameterization schemes in high-resolution numerical weather prediction (NWP) models. The application of such a forward operator allows a direct comparison of the model simulations to polarimetric radar observations. While the comparison of observed and synthetic reflectivity gives information on the quality of quantitative precipitation forecasts, the information from the polarimetric quantities allows for a direct evaluation of the capacity of the NWP model to realistically describe the processes involved in the formation and interactions of the hydrometeors and, hence, the performance of the microphysical parameterization scheme. This information is expected to be valuable for detecting systematic model errors and hence improve model physics. This paper summarizes the technical characteristics of the synthetic polarimetric radar (SynPolRad). Different polarimetric radar quantities are computed from model forecasts using a T-matrix scattering code and ice phase hydrometeors are explicitly considered. To do so, the sensitivities of the scattering processes to the microphysical characteristics of different ice hydrometeors are investigated using sensitivity studies. Furthermore, beam propagation effects are considered, including attenuation and beam bending. The performance of SynPolRad and the consistence of the assumptions made in the derivation of the input parameters are illustrated in a case study. The resulting synthetic quantities as well as hydrometeor classification are compared with observations and are shown to be consistent with the model assumptions.- Reference

An Analysis of Errors in Drop Size Distribution Retrievals and Rain Bulk Parameters with a UHF Wind Profiling Radar and a Two-Dimensional Video Disdrometer

Vertically pointed wind profiling radars can be used to obtain measurements of the underlying drop size distribution (DSD) for a rain event by means of the Doppler velocity spectrum. Precipitation parameters such as rainfall rate, radar reflectivity factor, liquid water content, mass-weighted mean drop diameter, and median volume drop diameter can then be calculated from the retrieved DSD. The DSD retrieval process is complicated by the presence of atmospheric turbulence, vertical ambient air motion, selection of fall speed relationships, and velocity thresholding. In this note, error analysis is presented to quantify the effect of each of those factors on rainfall rate. The error analysis results are then applied to two precipitation events to better interpret the rainfall-rate retrievals.

It was found that a large source of error in rain rate is due to unaccounted-for vertical air motion. For example, in stratiform rain with a rainfall rate of R = 10 mm h⁻¹, a mesoscale downdraft of 0.6 m s⁻¹ can result in a 34% underestimation of the estimated value of R. The fall speed relationship selection and source of air density information both caused negligible errors. Errors due to velocity thresholding become more important in the presence of significant contamination near 0 m s⁻¹, such as ground clutter. If particles having an equivalent volume diameter of 0.8 mm and smaller are rejected, rainfall rate errors from −4% to −10% are possible, although these estimates depend on DSD and rainfall rate.- Reference

Coupled Contributions in the Doppler Radar Spectrum Width Equation

Contrary to accepted usage, the second central moment of the Doppler spectrum is not the sum of the second central moments of individual spectral broadening mechanisms. A rigorous theoretical derivation of the spectrum width observed with short dwell times reveals that the sum cannot strictly be taken for the variances associated with various spectral broadening mechanisms and that an added-term coupling shear with turbulence is needed. Furthermore, shear and antenna rotation are coupled. The theoretical expressions derived herein apply to radars with fixed or scanning beams.- Reference

Clutter Suppression for Staggered PRT Waveforms

This paper presents a clutter suppression methodology for staggered pulse repetition time (PRT) observations. It is shown that spectral moments of precipitation echoes can be accurately estimated even in cases where clutter-to-signal ratios are high by using a parametric time domain method (PTDM).

Based on radar signal simulations, the accuracy of the proposed method is evaluated for various observation conditions. The performance of PTDM is demonstrated by the implementation of the staggered PRT at the Colorado State University–University of Chicago–Illinois State Water Survey (CSU–CHILL). Based on this study, it is found that the accuracy of the retrieval is comparable to the current state of the art methods applied to the uniformly sampled observations and that the estimated velocity is unbiased for the complete Nyquist range.- Reference

Effects of Multiple Scattering on Attenuation-Based Retrievals of Stratiform Rainfall from CloudSat

An attenuation-based method to retrieve vertical profiles of rainfall rates from height derivatives/gradients of CloudSat nadir-pointing W-band reflectivity measurements is discussed. This method takes advantage of the high attenuation of W-band frequency signals in rain and the low variability of nonattenuated reflectivity due to strong non-Rayleigh scattering from rain drops. The retrieval uncertainties could reach 40%–50%. The suggested method is generally applicable to rainfall rates (R) in an approximate range from about 2–3 to about 20–25 mm h⁻¹. Multiple scattering noticeably affects the gradients of CloudSat measurements for R values greater than about 5 mm h⁻¹. To avoid a retrieval bias caused by multiple-scattering effects, a special correction for retrievals is introduced. For rainfall rates greater than about 25 mm h⁻¹, the influence of multiple scattering gets overwhelming, and the retrievals become problematic, especially for rainfalls with higher freezing-level altitudes. The attenuation-based retrieval method was applied to experimental data from CloudSat covering the range of rainfall rates. CloudSat retrievals were compared to the rainfall estimates available from a National Weather Service ground-based scanning precipitation radar operating at S band. Comparisons between spaceborne and conventional radar rainfall retrievals were generally in good agreement and indicated the mutual consistency of both quantitative precipitation estimate types. The suggested CloudSat rainfall retrieval method is immune to the absolute calibration of the radar and to attenuation caused by the melting layer and snow regions. Since it does not require surface returns, it is applicable to measurements above both land and water surfaces.- Reference

Quality Assessment of Weather Radar Wind Profiles during Bird Migration

Wind profiles from an operational C-band Doppler radar have been combined with data from a bird tracking radar to assess the wind profile quality during bird migration. The weather radar wind profiles (WRWPs) are retrieved using the well-known volume velocity processing (VVP) technique. The X-band bird radar performed range–height scans perpendicular to the main migration direction and bird densities were deduced by counting and normalizing the observed echoes. It is found that the radial velocity standard deviation (σ_r) obtained from the VVP retrieval is a skillful indicator of bird migration. Using a threshold of 2 m s⁻¹ on σ_r, more than 93% of the bird-contaminated wind vectors are rejected while over 70% of the true wind vectors are accepted correctly. For high bird migration densities the raw weather radar wind vectors have a positive speed bias of 8.6 ± 3.8 m s⁻¹, while the quality-controlled wind vectors have a negligible speed bias. From the performance statistics against a limited area numerical weather prediction model, it is concluded that all (significant) bird contamination is removed and that high-quality weather radar wind profiles can be obtained, even during the bird migration season.- Reference