Timeline for How is Doppler radar used in rain prediction?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
6 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Jul 9, 2019 at 23:31 | comment | added | Semidiurnal Simon | @DavidHammen sorry, I got my language confused. But I also see your point that the radial component of far-away vertical movement is very small. | |
| Jul 9, 2019 at 23:03 | comment | added | David Hammen | @SemidiurnalSimon - Doppler detects range rate, the component of velocity along the line from the radar site to the target. The targets in this case, raindrops falling from clouds, is typically removed from the radar site by tens of kilometers. This means the vertical component of the falling rain is more or less undetectable, as is the horizontal component of velocity that is orthogonal to the line from the radar site to the clouds. Combining results from multiple doppler radar give a nice 2D view of the rain, but the vertical component remains more or less undetectable. | |
| Jul 9, 2019 at 16:51 | comment | added | Semidiurnal Simon | @DavidHammen but rising or falling air will have a component orthogonal to the radial lines from the radar! I mean, unless the radar is pointing directly up or down? ;-) | |
| Aug 10, 2017 at 15:47 | comment | added | TomO | My understanding is that such flow was turbulent and provided enough data for tracking. But I'm not hands on and will defer to a better knowledge. | |
| Aug 9, 2017 at 20:33 | comment | added | David Hammen | Doppler radar does not see air moving upward or downward. It only sees the radial component of the velocity of water particles moving toward or away from the radar antenna. The component of velocity orthogonal to the radial line is undetectable by radar. This is the zero isodop problem. | |
| Aug 8, 2017 at 22:50 | history | answered | TomO | CC BY-SA 3.0 |