Principles of High-Resolution Radar Network for Hazard Mitigation and Disaster Management in an Urban Environment

抄録

 The Center for Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere (CASA) Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) Urban Demonstration Network consists of a combination of high resolution X-band radar network and a National Weather Service S-band radar system (i.e., KFWS radar). Based primarily on these radars, CASA has developed end-to-end warning system that includes sensors, software architecture, products, data dissemination and visualization, and user decision making. This paper presents a technical summary of the DFW radar network for urban weather disaster detection and mitigation, from the perspective of tracking and warning of hails, tornadoes, and floods. Particularly, an overview of the X-band radar network design tradeoffs is presented. The architecture and associated algorithms for various product systems are described, including the real-time hail detection system, the multiple Doppler vector wind retrieval system, and the high-resolution quantitative precipitation estimation system. Sample products in the presence of high wind, tornado, hail, and flash flood are provided, and the systems’ performance is demonstrated through cross validation with ground observations and weather reports.