Use of Doppler radar for the measurement of atmospheric turbulence parameters from the intensity of clear‐air echoes

Abstract

Doppler radars measure the refractivity turbulence structure constant Cn2 in a straightforward manner. In this paper we explore the relationship between Cn2 and the intensity of atmospheric turbulence as parameterized by the eddy dissipation rate ε. We develop some tentative relations between mean Cn2 and mean ε within the framework of inertial range turbulence theory, taking into account the intermittent nature of atmospheric turbulence. These relations permit the estimation of mean ε from radar observations alone. The analysis is applied to the determination from Sunset radar data of vertical profiles and time‐height contours of mean ε.