Hook Echo Raindrop Sizes Retrieved Using Mobile, Polarimetric Doppler Radar Observations

Polarimetric radar observations obtained by NOAA's mobile, X-band, polarimetric radar (NOXP) are used to investigate hook echo precipitation properties in 15 supercells, including both tornadic and non-tornadic storms. Hook echo drop size distributions (DSDs) are estimated using NOXP radar data obtained from 2009-12, including during the second Verification of the Origins of Rotation in Tornadoes Experiment (VORTEX2). Three topics are discussed: (1) differences between tornadic and non-tornadic hook echo raindrop sizes, (2) the spatial distribution of estimated DSDs in hook echoes, and (3) the time evolution of approximated hook echo precipitation properties during parts of the life cycles of three tornadoes. The relatively high spatial and temporal resolution of NOXP allows for the latter two subjects, respectively, to be investigated uniquely. Near-storm environment data are used to motivate possible relationships between hook echo drop sizes and supercell dynamic processes.