ID#051

Documentation of severe convective storms using radar images and corresponding hail pad data of two target areas in Austria

Otto Svabik
Central Institute of Meteorology and Geodynamics, ZAMG - Austria

There are two running projects for finding out the efficiency of hail prevention activities (by seeding severe convective cells with silveriodide) around target areas in Lower Austria and in Styria. The target areas are covered with hail pad networks. Each of the 120, resp. 160 stations are equipped with five sided cubes - "Roofmate"-pads, size 30x32x2cm; network grid 2km. In case of hail events hail pad evaluations include per station the number of stones, Spectra = number of stones with diameter 5, 10, 15, ... mm, the amount of energy on each hit station [Joule/m2].

Corresponding data of the Austrian weather radar network (archived radar images in 10' steps) are compared with the data of the hail pad evaluations.

Relationship radar data/hail pad data is useful for clearly identifying radar hail signals.