Open Hardware Weather Radar
Kaya Theatre | Fri 14 Jan 2:40 p.m.–3:10 p.m.
Presented by
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Tishampati Dhar
@whatnick
https://whatnicklife.blogspot.com/
Tishampati Dhar is currently CIO at Aerometrex, an ASX listed aerial data provider for private and government clients. You may have seen our work on platforms such as Google Earth/Maps to whom we have been supplying aerial imagery and 3D models since 2009. He is a twice failed Dr. (MBBS/PhD) and spends the time ,outside of the unlimited hours of work expected in a growing company, with family and hacking on open-source projects mostly around collecting, modelling and visualising weather data.
Tishampati Dhar
@whatnick
https://whatnicklife.blogspot.com/
Abstract
If I would have to pick a super power, it would definitely be being able to see the whole of the electromagnetic (EM) spectrum rather than the tiny sliver our evolution under a yellow sun ☀️ has limited us to.
This talk covers seeing in different parts of the EM spectrum using an RX/TX SDR (LimeSDR). More specifically in microwave frequency ranges for observing moisture in the air and precipitation. These are the ISM bands around 2.5GHz, 5GHz and 10GHz, no one wants to license them due to weak propagation characteristics, however they present excellent experimental frequencies for radar design.
We will discuss the briefly the history of radar meteorology, the hardware needed to make a modern solid-state X-band phased array radar. The talk will extend to more advanced topics such as polarisation in radars and radar cross section (RCS) based on precipitation density and even drop shape. We will also cover retrieval of precipitation motion and wind information using Doppler. Finally we will discuss the community and social benefits radar brings with increased observability of the weather and use cases with a deployment in Africa.
If I would have to pick a super power, it would definitely be being able to see the whole of the electromagnetic (EM) spectrum rather than the tiny sliver our evolution under a yellow sun ☀️ has limited us to. This talk covers seeing in different parts of the EM spectrum using an RX/TX SDR (LimeSDR). More specifically in microwave frequency ranges for observing moisture in the air and precipitation. These are the ISM bands around 2.5GHz, 5GHz and 10GHz, no one wants to license them due to weak propagation characteristics, however they present excellent experimental frequencies for radar design. We will discuss the briefly the history of radar meteorology, the hardware needed to make a modern solid-state X-band phased array radar. The talk will extend to more advanced topics such as polarisation in radars and radar cross section (RCS) based on precipitation density and even drop shape. We will also cover retrieval of precipitation motion and wind information using Doppler. Finally we will discuss the community and social benefits radar brings with increased observability of the weather and use cases with a deployment in Africa.