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First observations of triple‐frequency radar Doppler spectra in snowfall: Interpretation and applications
Author(s) -
Kneifel S.,
Kollias P.,
Battaglia A.,
Lein J.,
Maahn M.,
Kalesse H.,
Tridon F.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1002/2015gl067618
Subject(s) - snow , spectral line , radar , doppler effect , doppler radar , physics , meteorology , environmental science , precipitation , remote sensing , computational physics , geology , computer science , telecommunications , astronomy
The potential of multifrequency Doppler spectra to constrain precipitation microphysics has so far only been exploited for dual‐frequency spectra in rain. In this study, we extend the dual‐frequency concept to triple‐frequency Doppler radar spectra obtained during a snowfall event which included rimed and unrimed snow aggregates. A large selection of spectra obtained from low‐turbulence regions within the cloud reveals distinctly different signatures of the derived dual spectral ratios. Due to the third frequency, a characteristic curve can be derived which is almost independent of the underlying particle size distribution and velocity‐size relation. This approach provides new opportunities for validating existing and future snow scattering models and reveals how the information content of triple‐frequency radar data sets can be further exploited for snowfall studies.