scholarly journals Radar Performance Monitoring Using the Angular Width of the Solar Image

2014 ◽  
Vol 31 (8) ◽  
pp. 1704-1712 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asko Huuskonen ◽  
Mikko Kurri ◽  
Harri Hohti ◽  
Hans Beekhuis ◽  
Hidde Leijnse ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Signal Processing ◽  
Performance Monitoring ◽  
Weather Radar ◽  
Antenna System ◽  
Weather Data ◽  
Radar Signal ◽  
Total Power ◽  
Angular Width ◽  
Volume Data ◽  
Radar Antenna

Abstract A method for the operational monitoring of the weather radar antenna mechanics and signal processing is presented. The method is based on the analysis of sun signals in the polar volume data produced during the operational scanning of weather radars. Depending on the hardware of the radar, the volume coverage pattern, the season, and the latitude of the radar, several tens of sun hits are found per day. The method is an extension of that for determining the weather radar antenna pointing and for monitoring the receiver stability and the differential reflectivity offset. In the method the width of the sun image in elevation and in azimuth is analyzed from the data, together with the center point position and the total power, analyzed in the earlier methods. This paper describes how the width values are obtained in the majority of cases without affecting the quality of the position and power values. Results from the daily analysis reveal signal processing features and failures that are difficult to find out otherwise in weather data. Moreover, they provide a tool for monitoring the stability of the antenna system, and hence the method has great potential for routine monitoring of radar signal processing and the antenna mechanics. Hence, it is recommended that the operational solar analysis be extended into the analysis of the width.

Operational Monitoring of Weather Radar Receiving Chain Using the Sun

2010 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 159-166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iwan Holleman ◽  
Asko Huuskonen ◽  
Mikko Kurri ◽  
Hans Beekhuis
Keyword(s):  
Weather Radar ◽  
Radar Data ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Volume Data ◽  
Operational Monitoring ◽  
Flux Data ◽  
Weather Radars ◽  
Receiver System ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Radar Antenna

Abstract A method for operational monitoring of a weather radar receiving chain, including the antenna gain and the receiver, is presented. The “online” method is entirely based on the analysis of sun signals in the polar volume data produced during operational scanning of weather radars. The method is an extension of that for determining the weather radar antenna pointing at low elevations using sun signals, and it is suited for routine application. The solar flux from the online method agrees very well with that obtained from “offline” sun tracking experiments at two weather radar sites. Furthermore, the retrieved sun flux is compared with data from the Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory (DRAO) in Canada. Small biases in the sun flux data from the Dutch and Finnish radars (between −0.93 and +0.47 dB) are found. The low standard deviations of these sun flux data against those from DRAO (0.14–0.20 dB) demonstrate the stability of the weather radar receiving chains and of the sun-based online monitoring. Results from a daily analysis of the sun signals in online radar data can be used for monitoring the alignment of the radar antenna and the stability of the radar receiver system. By comparison with the observations from a sun flux monitoring station, even the calibration of the receiving chain can be checked. The method presented in this paper has great potential for routine monitoring of weather radars in national and international networks.

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