Weather Radar

This book presents the fundamentals of polarimetric radar remote sensing through understanding wave scattering and propagation in geophysical media filled with hydrometers and other objects. The text characterizes the physical, statistical, and electromagnetic properties of hydrometers and establishes the relations between radar observables and physical state parameters. It introduces advanced remote sensing techniques (such as polarimetric phased array radar) and retrieval methods for physical parameters. The book also illustrates applications of polarimetric radar measurements in hydrometer classification, particle size distribution retrievals, microphysical parameterization, and weather quantification and forecast.

This 2001 book provides a detailed introduction to the principles of Doppler and polarimetric radar, focusing in particular on their use in the analysis of weather systems. The design features and operation of practical radar systems are highlighted throughout the book in order to illustrate important theoretical foundations.

With their images practically ubiquitious in the daily media, weather radar systems provide data not only for understanding weather systems and improving forecasts (especially critical for severe weather), but also for hydrological applications, flood warnings and climate research in which ground verification is needed for global precipitation measurements by satellites. This book offers an accessible overview of advanced methods, applications and modern research from the European perspective. An extensive introductory chapter summarizes the principles of weather radars and discusses the potential of modern radar systems, including Doppler and polarisation techniques, data processing, and error-correction methods. Addressing both specialist researchers and nonspecialists from related areas, this book will also be useful for graduate students planning to specialize in this field

Meteorology is by nature a multidisciplinary and transnational subject and COST cooperation has proved to be a flexible and suitable framework at European level for meteorological activities such as the standardisation of observation techniques and harmonised transmission of meteorological data. Although meteorology is not covered by a specific Community programme as such, various Community actions dealing with meteorology are now included in the EEC research programme on climatology (the "EPOCH" programme - 1989-92) of mechanisms of extreme and sudden concerning particularly the study meteorological events, in order to predict catastrophies and consequently to reduce human and material losses. In the context of COST cooperation, which is supported by the Commission of the European Communities, the COST 73 project (1986-1991) associates 16 countries in Western Europe with the aim of setting up a weather radar network providing real-time measurements of rain, snow or hail precipitations. In this project, radar data are transmitted and combined if appropriate with satellite data - in one or more "compositing centres" of the participating countries, in order to improve weather forecasting. Together with the COST 73 Management Committee, the Commission of the European Communities organized a seminar on this matter, in Brussels on 5-8 September 1989, at the half-way stage of the project.