Deciphering the Signatures of Oceanic Convective Rain Cells Using Simultaneous Observations From C‐Band Synthetic Aperture Radar Onboard EOS‐04 Satellite and GPM Measurements

• Published in: Geophysical research letters Vol. 50; no. 5
• Main Authors: Subrahmanyam, Kandula V., Bothale, Rajashree V., Swapna, Mullukutla, Chauhan, Prakash
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington John Wiley & Sons, Inc 16.03.2023; Wiley
• Subjects: Atmospheric boundary layer; Atmospheric precipitations; Clouds; convective rain cells; C‐band SAR; Earth observations (from space); EOS‐04; Flood mapping; Global precipitation; GPM; Hydrology; Hydrometeors; melting layer; Precipitation; Precipitation measurements; Radar; Radar signatures; Rain; Rain cells; SAR (radar); Satellite observation; Satellites; Synthetic aperture radar
• ISSN: 0094-8276; 1944-8007
• DOI: 10.1029/2022GL102317

Earth Observation Satellite (EOS)‐04 launched on 14 February 2022, carries a C‐band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) for Agriculture, Forestry, Hydrology, and Flood mapping applications. In this paper, we have used C‐band SAR images and near‐simultaneous observations from the global precipitation measurements (GPM) to study the signatures of multiple convective rain cells. The bright patches are found on C‐band SAR imagery, which depicts the information of hydrometeors such as graupels or hails in the melting layer. For the first time, unambiguously estimated the diameter of the convective core rain cells from the C‐band SAR backscattered signal and compared with near‐simultaneous observations from GPM‐GMI and Ku‐band radar to confirm our findings. Thus, the present study demonstrates the potential of C‐band SAR for identifying the signatures of convective rain cells. Plain Language Summary Earth Observation Satellite‐04 launched on 14 February 2022, carries a C‐band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) for Agriculture, Forestry, Hydrology, and Flood mapping applications. The Convective clouds produce a significant amount of precipitation, and the signature of convective rain cells appeared as bright oceanic patches on the SAR imagery. The present study demonstrates the potential of C‐band SAR for the signatures of convective rain cells and near‐simultaneous observations from global precipitation measurements to confirm our findings. Key Points The present study brought out the signatures of convective rain cells using C‐band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) onboard Earth Observation Satellite ‐04 satellite For the first time, unambiguously estimated the diameter of the convective core rain cells from the C‐band SAR backscattered signal We compared near‐simultaneous observations from GPM‐GMI and Ku‐band precipitation radar to confirm the present findings