Evaluating Multi-Radar, Multi-Sensor Products for Surface Hailfall Diagnosis

The operational deployment of the multi-radar, multi-sensor (MRMS) system has made available new products to use for hail detection. MRMS are provided on a spatial grid and can give information size extent distribution fall. This is important wide audience, including warning forecasters needing focus areas verification insurance users verify claim. Products typically verified evaluated using reports from Storm Data, which collected by local National Weather Service Offices. Severe Storms Laboratory conducted project collect hail, “no hail” near storms, at high resolution. project, Hazards Analysis Verification Experiment (SHAVE), tens thousands over ten years operations. Three-hundred eighty-nine SHAVE operations, yielded 21 184 2814 Data reports, investigated. Nine were with reflectivity lowest altitude demonstrating best discrimination where any fell maximum expected product severe-sized hail. SHAVE- Data-based evaluations showed marked differences in skill scores. Discussions between report databases explorations vertical profiles included.