An improvement of wind velocity estimation from radar Doppler spectra in the upper mesosphere

Abstract. We have developed a new parameter estimation method for Doppler wind spectra in the mesosphere observed with an MST radar such as the MU radar in the DBS (Doppler Beam Swinging) mode. Off-line incoherent integration of the Doppler spectra is carried out with a new algorithm excluding contamination by strong meteor echoes. At the same time, initial values on a least square fitting of the Gaussian function are derived using a larger number of integration of the spectra for a longer time and for multiple heights. As a result, a significant improvement has been achieved with the probability of a successful fitting and parameter estimation above 80 km. The top height for the wind estimation has been improved to around 95 km. A comparison between the MU radar and the High Resolution Doppler Imager (HRDI) on the UARS satellite is shown and the capability of the new method for a validation of a future satellite mission is suggested.

Key words. Meteorology and atmospheric dynamics (middle atmosphere dynamics) – Radio science (remote sensing; signal processing)