Melting layer characteristics at different climatic conditions in the Indian region: Ground based measurements and satellite observations

Melting layer height, which is normally assumed to be the limits of rain region, is an important parameter to consider the performance of earth space communication link above 10 GHz. In this paper, the variation of melting layer observed by a vertically looking Micro Rain Radar (MRR) for 3 years has been presented for two different climatic locations in Indian tropical region — Shillong (25°34′ N, 91°53′ E, 1050 m) and Trivandrum (8°29′ N, 76°57′ E, 4 m). The analyses show that the variation is quite significant for different months in Shillong but not for Trivandrum. The height of melting layer shows a strong correlation with ground temperature of these locations. The results agree well with the long term Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) measurements of melting layer indicating suitability of using TRMM data for such study. A comparison of MRR with the nearest Radiosonde measurement indicates that MRR can have potential application in the study of zero degree isotherm height in rainy conditions. Results also clearly indicate that the assumption of constant rain height is not a valid one for all tropical locations.

Research Highlights
► Melting layer characteristics over Indian region have been studied.
► The seasonal variations of melting layer height and thickness are shown.
► A strong correlation between melting height and ground temperature is observed.
► The seasonal variation of melting layer height is more marked at higher latitudes.
► Results indicate MRR can be used to study 0 °C isotherm height in rainy condition.