Spatially variable advection correction of Doppler radial velocity data

Abstract

Techniques to mitigate analysis errors arising from the non-simultaneity of data collections typically use advection-correction procedures based on the hypothesis (frozen turbulence) that the analyzed field can be represented as a pattern of unchanging form in horizontal translation. It is more difficult to advection correct the radial velocity than the reflectivity because even if the vector velocity field satisfies this hypothesis, its radial component does not – but that component does satisfy a second-derivative condition. We treat the advection correction of the radial velocity (vr) as a variational problem in which errors in that second-derivative condition are minimized subject to smoothness constraints on spatially variable pattern-translation components (U, V). The Euler- Lagrange equations are derived, and an iterative trajectory-based solution is developed in which U, V, and vr are analyzed together. The analysis code is first verified using analytical data, and then tested using Atmospheric Imaging Radar (AIR) data from a band of heavy rainfall on 4 September 2018 near El Reno, OK, and a decaying tornado on 27 May 2015 near Canadian, TX. In both cases, the analyzed vr field has smaller root-mean-square errors and larger correlation coefficients than in analyses based on persistence, linear time interpolation, or advection correction using constant U and V. As some experimentation is needed to obtain appropriate parameter values, the procedure is more suitable for non-real-time applications than use in an operational setting. In particular, the degree of spatial variability in U and V, and the associated errors in the analyzed vr field are strongly dependent on a smoothness parameter.