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Introduction

    The Wyoming Cloud Radar (WCR) is an observational system for the study of cloud structure and composition. It is installed principally on the Wyoming KingAir , but also on the NSF/NCAR C-130 and in the University of Wyoming Microwave Atmospheric Remote Sensing Mobile Laboratory (MARSF). Operating at 95 GHz (3 mm wavelength), the radar provides high-resolution measurements of reflectivity, velocity and polarization fields. Depending on the antenna configuration used (see Modes section), the scanned plane from the KingAir can be vertical or horizontal, and with two antennas, dual-Doppler analysis is possible. Coupled with the in situ observations of hydrometeors and air motions from the same aircraft these data yield unique information for analysis of cloud and precipitation processes.

   The WCR may be made available to users of the Wyoming KingAir Facility or NSF/NCAR C-130 through the NSF allocation process or by special requests.

   Development of the radar was a joint effort with the Microwave Remote Sensing Laboratory of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. The WCR was manufactured by ProSensing, Inc. (formerly Quadrant Engineering)

   Major funding for the acquisition, development and research use of the WCR has been derived from NSF, ONR, and NASA

History

   Collaboration between the Department of Atmospheric Science, University of Wyoming, and the Microwave Remote Sensing Laboratory (MIRSL), University of Massachusetts, to design, develop, install, and apply a millimeter-wavelength airborne radar, began in 1989 with the first field tests of a radar at the UWyo Elk Mountain Observatory. The radar was first mounted on the UWyo King Air research aircraft and operated with the full set of in-situ probes in fall 1992. Following those first tests, evolving versions of the radar have been used in variety of field programs. Through 1994, a radar unit belonging to UMass was utilized in the experiments. By the time of the Small Cumulus Microphysics Study (SCMS), in July 1995, operations began with the radar, hereafter referred to as WCR (Wyoming Cloud Radar), that was purchased by UWyo with funds from NSF, ONR, and the University of Wyoming Office of Research. The radar has dual polarization and Doppler capabilities.

    Since 1995, we participated in a number of field experiments with the WCR mounted on the King Air and in one experiment in which the WCR was mounted on the French research aircraft ARAT. In the summer of 2001 WCR was mounted on the NCAR C-130 and participated in DYCOMSII. WCR was successfully installed on the NRC of Canada Convair-580 for AIRSII, 2003.

    The main advantages of the WCR for cloud and precipitation studies are (i) the essentially instantaneous depiction of reflectivity and velocity fields at high spatial resolution and (ii) the coincident observations of detailed microphysics and of air motions by the other probes carried on the aircraft platform. A variety of cloud systems have been already studied with the WCR, in general revealing cloud structure not seen before. As a colloquial expression, one might say that the use of the WCR in cloud studies is as much of a revolution as was the introduction of the PMS probes in the 1970s.

    Along with the field studies, significant effort at both UMass and UWyo has been devoted to hardware and software improvements in the radar. These include increases in radar sensitivity, increased flexibility in real-time operation, post-flight data quality control, merging radar with KingAir data, and data display and analysis.

    In 2001-2002 three additional antennas, as part of the WCR, were installed in the KingAir. Thus the radar can observe targets in vertical(Up), side (latteral to the aircarft axis), side-forward, near nadir, and down-forward directions. Manual RF switches were used to make 2 of the 4 antennas active at any given time.

    In 2003 a new extension in the use of WCR was accomplished. Under a grant funded by NSF EPSCoR program we built a ground based facility where the WCR and RF radiometers can be operated for the purposes of instrument development, training and research.

    In 2004, a new switch network was built to allow pulse-by-pulse switching of the 4 antennas. This allows the radar to quasi-simultaneously observe clouds in all available directions (except for the slow switch between Side and Up directions). Now the WCR can measure cross sections of a cloud in three dimensions and quasi-simultaneous dual-Doppler analysis in vertical and horizontal planes is possible.

WCR2 - WCR next generation

    At the end of 2005 we started discussing the development of a new W-band radar that can replace the current radar. WCR is aging, both, technologically and physically. With WCR2 we plan to bring the latest in digital receiver technology, data acquisition, and improved and more reliable RF design. Higher sensitivity and multi-beam full Doppler spectra are among the expected exciting improvements and new features. The Department of Atmospheric Science is teaming with ProSensing, Inc., Pulse Systems, Inc., and EMS Technologies in the design and the construction of the new radar. We expect to have WCR2 some time in 2007 and make it fully opperational on UW KingAir in 2008.

The sponsors of the new WCR2 are The University of Wyoming, NSF, and NASA.