A compact millimeter-wave radar for studies of clouds and precipitation

This dissertation presents a unique Compact Millimeter-wave Radar (CMR) developed at the University of Massachusetts Microwave Remote Sensing Laboratory (MIRSL) for measurements of clouds and precipitation. CMR is a 95 GHz solid-state radar with high resolution and Doppler capability which is intended for the eventual use on an unmanned aerospace vehicle (UAV). Details of the design are given here with emphasis on the approaches used to reduce the size and power consumption by almost an order of magnitude compared to previous cloud radars. Ground-based experiments were conducted comparing measurements of clouds and snow made with CMR to those made with the Cloud Profiling Radar System, a full-sized 95 GHz radar with greater sensitivity. The results are used to verify the performance of CMR and to provide an initial external calibration