Ka-band Polarimetric Radar Data for Atlantic Snowstorms

IMPACTS field campaign data contains nine polarimetric radar variables, including reflectivity, mean velocity, and differential reflectivity, for studying snowstorms. Stony Brook University's KASPR instrument collected these observations during the 2020 winter season. Files are available in netCDF-4 format from January 6 to February 26, 2020.

Use Cases

• Analyzing snowband organization and evolution using reflectivity and velocity fields.
• Studying ice and snow particle microphysics via differential reflectivity and co-polarized correlation coefficient.
• Improving snowfall remote sensing interpretation with polarimetric variables like specific differential phase.
• Validating numerical weather prediction models for winter storms using detailed radar observations.

Strengths

• Contains nine specific polarimetric radar variables for detailed microphysical analysis.
• Data was collected during a dedicated, multi-year field campaign (IMPACTS 2020-2023) focused on snowstorms.
• Files are provided in the standardized, self-describing netCDF-4 format.

Limitations

• Exact file count, dataset size, and total row/observation numbers are not provided by any source.
• Sources conflict on the license, with one specifying 'other-license-specified' and another listing 'None'.
• The provided time range (Jan-Feb 2020) is a subset of the stated three-year campaign duration.

Provenance

Source

Stony Brook University (SBU) Ka-band Scanning Polarimetric Radar (KASPR), collected for the IMPACTS campaign.

Collection Method

Field campaign observations using a scanning polarimetric radar instrument.

Time Range

2020-01-06 to 2020-02-26 (data files); campaign conducted from 2020-2023.

Freshness

2026-03-12 22:00:53.540563

Geography

U.S. Atlantic Coast region.