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The Storm-Structure-Severity method for the identification of convective storm characteristics with conventional weather radar

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 April 2001

Petrus J M Visser
Petrus J M Visser
Affiliation:
Bethlehem Precipitation Research Project, South African Weather Bureau, Private Bag X15, Bethlehem, 9700, South Africa
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Abstract

Radar reflectivity information is often displayed in two dimensions, making it difficult to extract the structural characteristics of convective storms. The maximum radar reflectivity and the vertical profile of liquid water distribution in a vertical column of a convective cell is used to determine a structural and intensity classification of the cell. The application of this Storm-Structure-Severity classification is demonstrated by investigating a tornado event on 15 November 1998 in Harrismith, South Africa, by using volume-scanned reflectivity data from the S-band MRL-5 radar. The regions of convective development, decay and mesocyclone evolution are identified with this classification. The method is able to extract the three-dimensional structural information of convective storms embedded in volume-scanned reflectivity data and present it in a simple display format.

Type
Research Article
Information
Meteorological Applications , Volume 8 , Issue 1 , March 2001 , pp. 1 - 10
Copyright
© 2001 Royal Meterological Society

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