Trajectory of civil aircrafts is typically optimized off-board to optimize fuel consumption, using also information available from weather services. Changes to the set route are decided by the pilot based on METAR and NOTAM updates and unexpected adverse weather conditions detected by the weather radar installed on the nose of the aircraft [1]. Typically, weather radars of most civil aircrafts are single-polarization X-band systems (only larger airplanes use C-band) with 3° beam-width flat antenna, following the specifications set by the ARINC 708A standard. Notoriously, attenuation due to propagation through a precipitation filled medium is not negligible at X-band and in the presence of cluster of convective cells, the nearer cells masks or weakens returns from farther cells, ultimately determining a wrong input to the pilot's decision on optimal trajectory. Unfortunately, attenuation correction techniques applicable to single polarization radar are notoriously unreliable and strongly affected by radar calibration bias. Conversely, dual polarization technologies in ground based weather radar have demonstrated the capability of mitigating X-band attenuation based on differential phase shift measurements [2] and therefore could be successfully exploited for civil aviation weather radars. Current systems show to the pilot precipitation returns according to a few levels of reflectivity (the correspondence between colors and levels of reflectivity is not shown) and, within a shorter range, also information on turbulence detected from radar Doppler spectrum width. Meteorological interpretation of such images is largely left to the pilot's experience. Dual polarization radar provides more information arising from the sensitivity their measurements to microphysical properties of particles exploited in hydrometeor classification products [3]. On the other hand, dealing with more information yields increased workload for pilot and therefore, to keep simple and effective the information shown to the pilot, an automated software to process dual-polarization measurements along with trajectory information to support the pilot in decision making is essential. The European Union, through the Clean Sky framework funded several projects to improve airborne weather radars and to optimally use them to optimize flight route. The project KLEAN aimed at using output of the Selex ES Weather Radar Post-Processor software (WRPP) inside an EFB (Electronic Flight Bag) to produce weather classification maps and related binary risk maps as the final radar product to be shown to the pilots or to be used by a trajectory optimizer.

Exploiting dual-polarization technique in weather radar for civil aircrafts to mitigate risk in adverse conditions / Cuccoli, F.; Lupidi, A.; Bernabo, P.; Barcaroli, E.; Facheris, L.; Baldini, L.. - ELETTRONICO. - (2015), pp. 1-2. (Intervento presentato al convegno 1st URSI Atlantic Radio Science Conference, URSI AT-RASC 2015 tenutosi a esp nel 2015) [10.1109/URSI-AT-RASC.2015.7303071].

Exploiting dual-polarization technique in weather radar for civil aircrafts to mitigate risk in adverse conditions

CUCCOLI, FABRIZIO;BARCAROLI, ELISA;FACHERIS, LUCA;BALDINI, LUCA
2015

Abstract

Trajectory of civil aircrafts is typically optimized off-board to optimize fuel consumption, using also information available from weather services. Changes to the set route are decided by the pilot based on METAR and NOTAM updates and unexpected adverse weather conditions detected by the weather radar installed on the nose of the aircraft [1]. Typically, weather radars of most civil aircrafts are single-polarization X-band systems (only larger airplanes use C-band) with 3° beam-width flat antenna, following the specifications set by the ARINC 708A standard. Notoriously, attenuation due to propagation through a precipitation filled medium is not negligible at X-band and in the presence of cluster of convective cells, the nearer cells masks or weakens returns from farther cells, ultimately determining a wrong input to the pilot's decision on optimal trajectory. Unfortunately, attenuation correction techniques applicable to single polarization radar are notoriously unreliable and strongly affected by radar calibration bias. Conversely, dual polarization technologies in ground based weather radar have demonstrated the capability of mitigating X-band attenuation based on differential phase shift measurements [2] and therefore could be successfully exploited for civil aviation weather radars. Current systems show to the pilot precipitation returns according to a few levels of reflectivity (the correspondence between colors and levels of reflectivity is not shown) and, within a shorter range, also information on turbulence detected from radar Doppler spectrum width. Meteorological interpretation of such images is largely left to the pilot's experience. Dual polarization radar provides more information arising from the sensitivity their measurements to microphysical properties of particles exploited in hydrometeor classification products [3]. On the other hand, dealing with more information yields increased workload for pilot and therefore, to keep simple and effective the information shown to the pilot, an automated software to process dual-polarization measurements along with trajectory information to support the pilot in decision making is essential. The European Union, through the Clean Sky framework funded several projects to improve airborne weather radars and to optimally use them to optimize flight route. The project KLEAN aimed at using output of the Selex ES Weather Radar Post-Processor software (WRPP) inside an EFB (Electronic Flight Bag) to produce weather classification maps and related binary risk maps as the final radar product to be shown to the pilots or to be used by a trajectory optimizer.
2015
2015 1st URSI Atlantic Radio Science Conference, URSI AT-RASC 2015
1st URSI Atlantic Radio Science Conference, URSI AT-RASC 2015
esp
Cuccoli, F.; Lupidi, A.; Bernabo, P.; Barcaroli, E.; Facheris, L.; Baldini, L.
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Utilizza questo identificatore per citare o creare un link a questa risorsa: https://hdl.handle.net/2158/1069322
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