EDOP: X-Band Doppler Radar Observations of Amazonian Convection

NASA's ER-2 aircraft collected this X-band (9.6 GHz) Doppler radar data during the 1998-1999 TRMM-LBA campaign over the Amazon. The instrument's dual antennas, pointing nadir and 33 degrees forward, captured high-resolution vertical profiles of reflectivity and velocity to study intense tropical convection. Data files in netCDF-4 format cover specific flights from December 18, 1998, to February 25, 1999.

Use Cases

• Analyzing vertical wind velocity profiles based on Doppler velocity measurements.
• Studying the microphysical structure of convective storms using radar reflectivity data.
• Validating satellite-based precipitation estimates from the TRMM mission with airborne radar.
• Investigating the lifecycle of Amazonian convection within a coordinated ground and aircraft observation network.

Strengths

• Data originates from a coordinated NASA field campaign (TRMM-LBA) with ground validation sites.
• Provides high-resolution measurements with a 37.5-meter range gate spacing and a minimum detectable reflectivity of -10 dBZ at 15 km altitude.
• Covers a focused temporal period during the Amazon wet season, from late 1998 to early 1999.

Limitations

• Column names and a precise row count are not provided in the available metadata.
• The exact license terms are unspecified, only noted as 'other-license-specified'.
• Temporal coverage is not fully contiguous, with data files available only between December 18, 1998, and February 25, 1999, despite the campaign running from November 1998.

Provenance

Source

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center / GHRC DAAC, collected via the ER-2 aircraft during the TRMM-LBA field campaign.

Collection Method

Airborne remote sensing using a nose-mounted X-band Doppler radar with fixed nadir and forward-looking antennas.

Time Range

1998-11 to 1999-02 (campaign), with specific data files from 1998-12-18 to 1999-02-25.

Freshness

Metadata was last updated on 2026-04 09, though the data itself is from 1999.

Geography

Amazonia, Brazil, specifically over the humid tropical land regions studied by the TRMM-LBA campaign.