SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR INFERING HAIL AND LIGHTNING USING AN AIRBORNE WEATHER RADAR VOLUMETRIC BUFFER

• Main Authors: BUNCH BRIAN PAUL, CHRISTIANSON PAUL
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 23.06.2011
• Subjects: ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION ORRERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; MEASURING; METEOROLOGY; PHYSICS; RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS; TECHNOLOGIES FOR ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE; TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINSTCLIMATE CHANGE; TESTING

A weather radar system for improving output of potential lightning and hail weather conditions. An exemplary system includes a processor that receives and stores the weather radar reflectivity values into a three-dimensional buffer, receives an outside air temperature value, and determines freezing level based on the received outside air temperature value. The processor generates lightning icon(s) when a reflectivity value stored at cell(s) of the three-dimensional buffer above determined freezing level is greater than a first threshold amount. Also, the processor adds 1.6 km to the determined freezing level and generates hail icon(s) when a reflectivity value stored at cell(s) at the determined freezing level plus 1.6 km are greater than a second threshold amount. The display device displays the hail and lightning icons when an altitude value that corresponds to the cells associated with the generated lightning icons has been selected for display.