Assessing uncertainty in radar measurements on simplified meteorological scenarios

Abstract

A three-dimensional radar simulator model (RSM) developed by Haase (1998) is coupled with the non-hydrostatic mesoscale weather forecast model Lokal-Modell (LM). The radar simulator is able to model reflectivity measurements by using the following meteorological fields, generated by Lokal Modell, as inputs: temperature, pressure, water vapour content, cloud water content, cloud ice content, rain sedimentation flux and snow sedimentation flux. This work focuses on the assessment of some uncertainty sources associated with radar measurements: 1. absorption by the atmospheric gases, e.g., molecular oxygen, water vapour, and nitrogen; 2. attenuation due to the presence of a highly reflecting structure between the radar and a "target structure". RSM results for a simplified meteorological scenario, consisting of a humid updraft on a flat surface and four cells placed around it, are presented.