Strange New Mexico Radar Capture

[Jason Toft]

Hey everyone,

I'm using the GRLevel3 program and I found this interesting radar capture out of Holloman AFB in New Mexico. I'm not sure if it is a glitch or a sandstorm or a strange, but normal, storm. It's moving very slow and velocity data is all over the place. It doesn't look normal at all. Here's a pic:



Edit1: Here's another capture without the info from 13 minutes later.



Any ideas?

Thanks,
Jason

 

[matthaden]

Is it possible that it could be radar chaff from fighter jets out there?

 

[John Diel]

You're probably looking at the Organ Mountains (West) and the Sacramento Mountains (East). If there was any wind out there, it could have been kicking up the dust from the Tularosa basin and White Sands.

The echos are right on both moutain ranges (east and west) with Holloman situated in the middle. This is doubtful as far as chaff as the Air Force doesn't routinely fly along the Organs. The bombing range is to the north and west a bit (about 75 miles or so) near Soccoro and Lincoln.

In those mountains you get all sorts of weird refelectivity. It's especially bad for radio communications. I can remember being able to hit to state EMS repeaters from White Sands (LOS on both) and then drive a mile and lose all communications, still within LOS of the repeaters.

I would bet that if you looked at tilt 2 or 3 on GRLevel3, you would have seen this disappear. That's why I think it's the mountains and not any real convection.

 

[Kiel Ortega]

You're probably looking at the Organ Mountains (West) and the Sacramento Mountains (East). If there was any wind out there, it could have been kicking up the dust from the Tularosa basin and White Sands.

The echos are right on both moutain ranges (east and west) with Holloman situated in the middle. This is doubtful as far as chaff as the Air Force doesn't routinely fly along the Organs. The bombing range is to the north and west a bit (about 75 miles or so) near Soccoro and Lincoln.

In those mountains you get all sorts of weird refelectivity. It's especially bad for radio communications. I can remember being able to hit to state EMS repeaters from White Sands (LOS on both) and then drive a mile and lose all communications, still within LOS of the repeaters.

I would bet that if you looked at tilt 2 or 3 on GRLevel3, you would have seen this disappear. That's why I think it's the mountains and not any real convection.

Agree completely...we used this radar a couple of times when we were testing out out the QC Neural Net for WDSSII up at the lab...always has great false echos from ground clutter.

 

[Aaron Kennedy]

Chaff shows up most often on Cannon AFB's radar: KFDX in NM.

Aaron

 

[Jason Toft]

Yep. I went to BR 2 and 3 on GRLevel3, and they disappeared. I was amazed at it...I've learned something new. Thanks everyone!

Jason

 

[B Ozanne]

Chaff often shows up on the Salt Lake City radar as well. Mostly over the Great Salt Lake and the western deserts.

You'd be amazed at what people use NWS radar for besides the weather. Each site has its own special traits. From the daily bat migrations in Texas to seasonal bird migrations around the country. And of course, sunrise and sunset.

Does anybody know of other special uses for NWS radars besides the weather?

 

[John Diel]

Jason,

Take a look sometime at the visible satellite sometime. You can clearly see White Sands National Monument which extends across teh basin from both sets of mountain ranges. To the north you will see a long narrow dark area, These are the Malpais. An ancient lava flow that runs along the northern portion of the Tularosa Basin. This is neat to take a look at using Google earth as there are trails and a highway that run through it. You can also see the National Monument (White Sands) with cars and people out "dune surfing". Further west, you can actually make out White Sands Space Harbor and the associated runways. The Organ Mountains on the western side are a tall but narrow range running from El Paso north as part of the rockies. The Sacramento range is taller, but also wider in which they eventually combine further north to become the Rockies southern end.

I spent a lot of time at WSMR and have flown and driven the range many a time.

 

[Kevin Bowman]

Originally posted by Aaron Kennedy
Chaff shows up most often on Cannon AFB's radar: KFDX in NM.

Aaron

what is a chaff?

 

[Aaron Kennedy]

Chaff is a radar guided missle countermeasure for aircraft. Although the exact formula is classified, it is thought to be essentially strips or needles of extremely reflective (to radiation) material such as aluminum foil. It shows up extremely well on radar since it reflects pretty much all wavelenghts within the bands that radar uses.

Aaron

 

[MClarkson]

also chaff is lightweight so it will stay in the air for extended periods of time and travel with the prevailing wind. They sometimes drop it in lines and sometimes in small spots durring excercises so it looks just like precip echos. I saw what I thought was a shower(~40dbz) moving onshore over KDAB and went outside to look at it... skies were clear.