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Improved Algorithms for Removing Isolated Non-Meteorological Echoes and Ground Clutters in CINRAD

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Abstract

Using China New Generation Weather Radar (CINRAD) level-II data, the original algorithms for removing isolated non-meteorological echoes and ground clutters in radar data, which have been applied to Weather Surveillance Radar-1988 Doppler (WSR-88D) in the USA and Severe Weather Automatic Nowcast (SWAN) system in China, are modified and improved. To remove isolated non-meteorological echoes, the new algorithm introduces a constraint parameter (Po) to distinguish whether a window of 5 × 5 points is isolated as external echoes. A statistical analysis of 150 radar scans (5 cases, with each case comprising 30 scans) under three different echo types (small-scale convection, typhoon, and large-scale synoptic system) shows that the constraint parameter Po ⩽ 0.167 is suitable for removing isolated non-meteorological echoes while preserving the edge of meteorological echoes. A new parameter, NDZ, which promotes the ability of the algorithm to identify the ground clutters appearing at two adjacent elevation angles, is constructed based on the vertical continuity of reflectivity. These improved algorithms are tested for four cases (three cases of isolated non-meteorological echoes and one case of ground clutters). Based on the statistics of 232 volume scans of radar data (on a temporal resolution of 1 h) measured at Nanchang station from 0000 UTC 5 to 1600 UTC 14 March 2015, it is found that the improved algorithms not only eliminate most (over 95% under clear-sky conditions) of the isolated non-meteorological echoes and ground clutters (including those appearing at two adjacent elevation angles), but also well preserve the structure of meteorological echoes (storms). Key words: radar, isolated non-meteorological echoes, ground clutter, quality control

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Acknowledgments

We thank the two anonymous reviewers and the editor for their constructive comments, which have certainly helped improve the manuscript from its original version. Dr. Zhiqun Hu provided useful comments and suggestions regarding the received baseband complex signal at the signal-processing level.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Atmosphere Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China

    Haibo Zou & Shuwen Zhang

  2. State Key Laboratory of Severe Weather, Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China

    Haibo Zou & Xudong Liang

  3. Meteorological Disaster Emergency Warning Center of Jiangxi Province, Nanchang, 330046, China

    Haibo Zou & Xueting Yi

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  1. Haibo Zou
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Correspondence to Shuwen Zhang.

Additional information

Supported by the Jiangxi Provincial Department of Science and Technology project (20171BBG70004), Open Project of the State Key Laboratory of Severe Weather, Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences (2016LASW-N11), and National Natural Science Foundation of China (41575098).

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Zou, H., Zhang, S., Liang, X. et al. Improved Algorithms for Removing Isolated Non-Meteorological Echoes and Ground Clutters in CINRAD. J Meteorol Res 32, 584–597 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13351-018-7176-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13351-018-7176-9

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