A new approach for estimating turbulence parameters from COSMIC GPS RO and its evaluation using ST/MST Radar network over India

[1]¿p#1 newcommands Assessment of atmospheric turbulence beyond local scales is of utmost importance. As a first step in this direction, a novel method to estimate turbulence using COSMIC-1 & 2 GPS RO satellite observations is demonstrated in this study. The network of four ST/MST radars and collocated radiosonde launches from distinct geographical locations- Cochin (10.04°N, 76.33°E), Gadanki (13.5°N, 79.2°E), Haringhata (22.94°N, 88.51°E) and Nainital (29.35°N, 79.45°E) in the Asian Summer Monsoon (ASM) region have been used to evaluate and assess turbulence parameters obtained using Radio Occultation during two contrasting seasons, summer and winter. Results show that turbulence parameters derived from RO agree with radar and radiosonde measurements, with deviations not exceeding ~5-10 dB at some heights. This corresponds to deviations not exceeding 10-20% across the height bins. Climatological turbulence parameters from COSMIC-2 have been evaluated at these four locations, which show the seasonal variations over a year. Thus, proving the utility of COSMIC derived turbulence as a good tool to further evaluate the probability of turbulence characteristics with larger spatial and near-real-time.