Radar Sounders
DPR
One of the prime instruments for the GPM Core Observatory is called the Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR). The DPR consists of a Ku-band precipitation radar (KuPR) and a Ka-band precipitation radar (KaPR). The KuPR (13.6 GHz) is an updated version of the highly successful unit flown on the TRMM mission. The KuPR and the KaPR will be co-aligned on the GPM spacecraft bus such that that the 5 km (3.1 mile) footprint location on the earth will be the same. The DPR is a spaceborne precipitation radar capable of making accurate rainfall measurements. The DPR is expected to be more sensitive than its TRMM predecessor especially in the measurement of light rainfall and snowfall in the high latitude regions. Rain/snow determination is expected to be accomplished by using the differential attenuation between the Ku-band and the Ka-band frequencies. The variable pulse repetition frequency (VPRF) technique is also expected to increase the number of samples at each IFOV to realize a 0.2 mm/h sensitivity. Information provided by http://pmm.nasa.gov/GPM/flight-project/DPR. See website for top-level general design specifications. Group: Instrument_Details Entry_ID: DPR Group: Instrument_Identification Instrument_Category: Earth Remote Sensing Instruments Instrument_Class: Active Remote Sensing Instrument_Type: Profilers/Sounders Instrument_Subtype: Radar Sounders Short_Name: DPR Long_Name: Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar End_Group Group: Associated_Platforms Short_Name: GPM End_Group Online_Resource: http://pmm.nasa.gov/GPM/flight-project/DPR Creation_Date: 2009-08-11 End_Group