Disdrometer

About: Disdrometer is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 930 publications have been published within this topic receiving 23092 citations.

First in situ observations of binary raindrop collisions

Abstract: In this article, we present the first-time observations of binary raindrop collisions in rainfall events. These observations constitute a critical step in concluding a long-standing debate on the controlling physical process, binary raindrop collision versus spontaneous raindrop breakup, for the raindrop size distribution (DSD) evolution from cloud to ground level. Our raindrop collision observations were made possible by a new instrument called the High-speed Optical Disdrometer (HOD) that we recently developed for precipitation microphysics investigations. Our approximately one-year long field campaign that covered 33 rainfall events provided 11 observations of binary raindrop collisions and outcomes, but no spontaneous breakup observation. The field-observed collision rate (i.e. number of raindrop collisions within the measurement volume of the HOD per unit time) showed an increasing trend with increasing rain rate as expected from the theoretical collision rate predictions. Furthermore, the field-observed collision rates were (i) comparable (for rain rates less than approximately 50 mm/hr) and (ii) significantly larger (for larger rain rates) than the theoretically predicted rates that have been used in various numerical investigations that suggest the controlling role of raindrop collisions in DSD evolution. Our observations, yet to be supplemented with observations from comprehensive field campaigns at different geographic locations and rainfall events for a definitive conclusion, support the collision-driven DSD evolution hypothesis.

Microphysical Features of Rain and Rain events during different Seasons over a Tropical Mountain location using an Optical Disdrometer.

Abstract: In the present study, seven-year-long observations of rain microphysical properties are presented using a ground-based disdrometer located at Braemore; a site on the windward slope of the Western Ghats (WG) over the Indian Peninsula. The annual cycle of rainfall shows a bimodal distribution with a primary peak during summer monsoon and secondary peak during pre-monsoon. Pre-monsoon rain events are less in number but are with high intensity and characterize large raindrops and low number concentration. During summer monsoon, short and less intense rain events with small drops are noticed. Post-monsoon rain is having a long duration less intense events with lower concentration of large raindrops compared to the summer monsoon. In the seasonal variation of mean diameter (Dm) and raindrop concentration (NT) with Rain Intensity (RI), winter and pre-monsoon rains exhibit higher values of Dm and lower values of NT compared to the summer and post-monsoon seasons for all the RI ranges. The mean features of the rain microphysical parameters are also supported by the case studies of rain events. RI, Dm and NT are categorized into different range bins for all the seasons to identify their variation and relative rainfall contribution to the total seasonal rainfall. Heavy drizzle/Light rain has maximum rain duration, and the relative contribution to the rainfall is high from heavy rain type. Winter and pre-monsoon rains are mostly contributed from the larger raindrops (>Dm3), and during summer and post-monsoons it is from Dm2 onwards. The distribution of occurrence frequency of NT and rainfall are similar during all four seasons. NT2 recorded rainfall percentage nearly the same as NT1 in summer monsoon and this also supports large number of raindrops in this season. In RI-Duration analysis, all seasons showed similar distribution, and 90% of total duration is contributed from RI with less than 20 mm h−1.

Preprocessing and Assessment of Rain Drop Size Distributions Measured With a K-Band Doppler Radar and an Optical Disdrometer

Abstract: Rain attenuation in millimeter-wave links depends on the drop size distributions (DSDs) of the raindrops. Empirical models disregard this dependence and estimate the specific attenuation using only the integrated rainfall rate [ $R$ (mm/h)]. This approach is valid for lower frequencies but it progressively losses accuracy as the frequency of interest becomes higher within the millimeter-wave range. Both the characterization of rainfall phenomena and the prediction of rain attenuation can be improved with the knowledge of DSD, which, in turn, depend on the type of rain event (stratiform or convective) and the $R$ . In this article, long-term DSD measurements from a vertical Doppler radar [Micro Rain Radar (MRR-2)] and a laser optical disdrometer (Thies laser disdrometer) are used to obtain, classify, and compare the statistics of DSD in Madrid in a period of more than ten years. The process to obtain the DSD from these advanced instruments is analyzed in detail, providing recommendations about the calibration of the radar data and the most appropriate particle filtering to apply on the laser disdrometer data.

Excess Attenuation Caused by Antenna Wetting of Terrestrial Microwave Links at 32 GHz

Abstract: Excess attenuation of microwave radio links caused by the wet antenna effect is addressed. Long-term measured attenuation of two commercial microwave links (816 m 611 m long) at 32 GHz is compared to theoretically predicted rain attenuation. The theoretical prediction is calculated using a kRα relationship where k and α are constants derived from a local disdrometer measurement, and rain rate R is available from rain gauges placed at both ends of the links to obtain the distribution of rain rate along the path length. From this comparison, excess attenuation caused by antenna wetting is derived. A new model describing wet antenna attenuation (WAA) as a function of rain rate is suggested where excess attenuation reaches approx. 3 dB per antenna for a rain rate of 100 mm/h. Statistics of theoretically predicted rain attenuation, including the WAA term, is compared with statistics of measured attenuation on a set of three other links working at the same frequency. Adding the wet antenna term to the rain attenuation calculation significantly improves the accuracy of the rain attenuation prediction.

Toward a Global Map of Raindrop Size Distributions. Part I: Rain-Type Classification and Its Implications for Validating Global Rainfall Products

Abstract: Variability in the global distribution of precipitation is recognized as a key element in assessing the impact of climate change for life on earth. The response of precipitation to climate forcings is, however, poorly understood because of discrepancies in the magnitude and sign of climatic trends in satellite-based rainfall estimates. Quantifying and ultimately removing these biases is critical for studying the response of the hydrologic cycle to climate change. In addition, estimates of random errors owing to variability in algorithm assumptions on local spatial and temporal scales are critical for establishing how strongly their products should be weighted in data assimilation or model validation applications and for assigning a level of confidence to climate trends diagnosed from the data. This paper explores the potential for refining assumed drop size distributions (DSDs) in global radar rainfall algorithms by establishing a link between satellite observables and information gleaned from regional validation experiments where polarimetric radar, Doppler radar, and disdrometer measurements can be used to infer raindrop size distributions. By virtue of the limited information available in the satellite retrieval framework, the current method deviates from approaches adopted in the ground-based radar community that attempt to relate microphysical processes and resultant DSDs to local meteorological conditions. Instead, the technique exploits the fact that different microphysical pathways for rainfall production are likely to lead to differences in both the DSD of the resulting raindrops and the three-dimensional structure of associated radar reflectivity profiles. Objective rain-type classification based on the complete three-dimensional structure of observed reflectivity profiles is found to partially mitigate random and systematic errors in DSDs implied by differential reflectivity measurements. In particular, it is shown that vertical and horizontal reflectivity structure obtained from spaceborne radar can be used to reproduce significant differences in Zdr between the easterly and westerly climate regimes observed in the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission Large-scale Biosphere‐Atmosphere (TRMM-LBA) field experiment as well as the even larger differences between Amazonian rainfall and that observed in eastern Colorado. As such, the technique offers a potential methodology for placing locally observed DSD information into a global framework.