Abstract:
It is difficult to compare phased array weather radar data with normal dish antenna Doppler weather radar data collected from different locations and under different test conditions. In order to determine the detection capability of a phased array weather radar, a reflectivity matching algorithm and a quantitative analysis method against the various radar resolution and different places are proposed. Using the S-band phased array radar (S-PAR) data and the Nanjing CINRAD observational data, the precipitation structures measured by the two radars are compared. The results indicate that: (1) S-PAR can make precipitation measurements with a reasonable accuracy and reduce the scanning time with its electronically steered multiple simultaneous beams. (2) At the range of 100 km, the smearing effect caused by the wide beam width is obvious: S-PAR can hardly detect the subtle structures. (3) The sensitivity of S-PAR is lower, causing its minimum reflectivity factor to be 16 dBz higher than that of CINRAD/SA. And, (4) radar data in different locations can be matched very well with the proposed algorithm, and different vertical treatments after coordinate matching will produce nuanced results, among which the smoothing algorithm based on sampling volume could achieve a best result.