Open AccessA 35-GHz Polarimetric Doppler Radar for Long-Term Observations of Cloud Parameters—Description of System and Data Processing
Author(s) -
Ulrich Görsdorf,
Volker Lehmann,
Matthias Bauer-Pfundstein,
Gerhard Peters,
D. M. Vavriv,
В. В. Виноградов,
V. A. Volkov
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of atmospheric and oceanic technology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.774
H-Index - 124
eISSN - 1520-0426
pISSN - 0739-0572
DOI - 10.1175/jtech-d-14-00066.1
Subject(s) - ceilometer , remote sensing , radar , polarimetry , calibration , environmental science , satellite , term (time) , doppler effect , antenna (radio) , cloud computing , ionosonde , observatory , transmitter , meteorology , computer science , geology , lidar , physics , telecommunications , optics , channel (broadcasting) , quantum mechanics , astronomy , astrophysics , scattering , operating system , electron density , electron
A 35-GHz radar has been operating at the Meteorological Observatory Lindenberg (Germany) since 2004, measuring cloud parameters continuously. The radar is equipped with a powerful magnetron transmitter and a high-gain antenna resulting in a high sensitivity of −55 dB Z at 5-km height for a 10-s averaging time. The main purpose of the radar is to provide long-term datasets of cloud parameters for model evaluation, satellite validation, and climatological studies. Therefore, the system operates with largely unchanged parameter settings and a vertically pointing antenna. The accuracy of the internal calibration (budget calibration) has been appraised to be 1.3 dB. Cloud parameters are derived by two different approaches: macrophysical parameters have been deduced for the complete period of operation through combination with ceilometer measurements; a more enhanced target classification and the calculation of liquid and ice water contents are realized by algorithms developed in the framework of the European CloudNet project.