Remote Sensing of Clouds and Precipitation

Description

This book presents current applications of remote sensing techniques for clouds and precipitation for the benefit of students, educators, and scientists. It covers ground-based systems such as weather radars and spaceborne instruments on satellites. Measurements and modeling of precipitation are at the core of weather forecasting, and long-term observations of the cloud system are vital to improving atmospheric models and climate projections. The first section of the book focuses on the use of ground-based weather radars to observe and measure precipitation and to detect and forecast storms, thunderstorms, and tornadoes. It also discusses the observation of clouds using ground-based millimeter radar. The second part of the book concentrates on spaceborne remote sensing of clouds and precipitation. It includes cases from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission, using satellite radars to observe precipitation systems. Then, the focus is on global cloud observations from the ClaudSat, Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO), including a perspective on the Earth Clouds, Aerosols, and Radiation Explorer (EarthCARE) satellite. It also addresses global atmospheric water vapor profiling for clear and cloudy conditions using microwave observations. The final part of this volume provides a perspective into advances in cloud modeling using remote sensing observations. Front Matter ....Pages i-xiv Front Matter ....Pages 1-1 Introduction (Constantin Andronache)....Pages 3-13 Weather Radars (Matthew R. Kumjian)....Pages 15-63 Ground-Based Radar Technologies for Tornado Observations (David J. Bodine, James M. Kurdzo)....Pages 65-112 Ground-Based Weather Radar to Investigate Thunderstorms (Luca Baldini, Nicoletta Roberto, Mario Montopoli, Elisa Adirosi)....Pages 113-135 Cloud Radars (Takeshi Maesaka)....Pages 137-152 Front Matter ....Pages 153-153 The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (Mircea Grecu, David T. Bolvin)....Pages 155-174 Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM): Unified Precipitation Estimation from Space (Gail Skofronick-Jackson, Wesley Berg, Chris Kidd, Dalia B. Kirschbaum, Walter A. Petersen, George J. Huffman et al.)....Pages 175-193 Cloud Remote Sensing by Active Sensors: New Perspectives from CloudSat, CALIPSO and EarthCARE (Hajime Okamoto, Kaori Sato)....Pages 195-214 Atmospheric Water Vapour Profiling over Ocean/Land and for Clear/Cloudy Situations Using Microwave Observations (Filipe Aires)....Pages 215-255 Advances in Clouds and Precipitation Modeling Supported by Remote Sensing Measurements (Takamichi Iguchi, Toshihisa Matsui)....Pages 257-277 Back Matter ....Pages 279-282