Observations of vertical rain structure using space borne and ground based radars at a Tropical location

Simultaneous radar measurements of rain from the space and the ground are presented to study the vertical profile of the precipitation structure under varying propagation and raining conditions. The measurements used for this study are the Precipitation Radar (PR) aboard Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite and a ground based Micro Rain Radar (MRR) operating at the University of Calcutta. The dual frequency radar observations of precipitating atmosphere have been utilized to study the vertical profiles of radar reflectivity and rain rate, indicating the limitations of combining space based and ground based measurements.