Precipitation is considered a continuous data surface, which can be highly variable especially during convective activity. With the advent of the WSR-88D (NEXRAD) radar, samples can be collected over large geographical regions with respect to precipitation at a higher resolution. The radar can sample the reflectivity of precipitation into cells having a resolution of 2-km or less. This radar reflectivity along with a radar algorithm is used to estimate precipitation over a coverage area. This presentation will compare the precipitation estimates from three geographic areas (Pacific Northwest, Upper Midwest, and the Northeast) and look at the difference in spatial resolution of the surface precipitation reporting stations in these different regions. The terrain shadowing effects with respect to each location will also be considered in each geographic area.
Scott Kroeber is a faculty research assistant in the Regional Weather Information Center at the University of North Dakota. During his seventeen years at UND, Scott was involved in the universities field research projects as a Doppler weather radar operator. He also served as the Department of Atmospheric Sciences meteorology lab coordinator, and was a lab instructor. Presently he is involved in working with Geographical Information Systems. Scott’s area of expertise is in merging meteorological data sets, into Geographical Information Systems.