Improved range-profiling algorithm of rainfall rate from a spaceborne radar with path-integrated attenuation constraint

A range-profiling algorithm for rainfall rate retrieval from a single-frequency downward-looking spaceborne radar is presented. The algorithm is based on a linear reformulation of the radar equation. The path-integrated attenuation given by the surface echo measurement is used as a constraint for normalizing the range-gated rain echoes. The expected performances are studied analytically and compared with those of the approach of W. Hitschfeld and J. Bordan (1954). The stability and accuracy of the rainfall profile retrieval in the presence of various types of errors are pointed out and illustrated by means of numerical simulations of data processing from a spaceborne rain radar operating basically at Ku band