Operation of a Mobile Wind Profiler In Severe Clutter Environments

Wind profiling radars have been in use since the 1970s (Green et al. 1979). They are now being used with increasing frequency in operational meteorology under a wide range of conditions. One limitation to operation at many sites is contamination from ground and intermittent clutter and radio frequency interference (RFI). Currently, wind profiler radars must be deployed at locations with a minimum of clutter contamination to produce accurate winds, especially at lower altitudes required for boundary layer applications. Recent advancements in both radar hardware and signal processing allow wind profilers to operate in severe clutter environments. A mobile wind profiler capable of operation in nearly any clutter environment would be useful for many applications. Examples include local weather forecasts during forest fires and dispersion prediction in case of a toxic substance release. In addition, a rapid deployment capability is required for these real world applications. NOAA’s Environmental Technology Laboratory has developed a prototype mobile wind profiler and demonstrated its feasibility. This paper describes the changes to a standard wind profiler that are necessary to operate in severe clutter conditions and shows some early results from the mobile profiler.