System design and examination of spaceborne microwave rain-scatterometer

The remote sensing of precipitation, especially rain by the spaceborne weather radar is an important subject which has not been realized. The system design and examination of the spaceborne weather radar which is called as the spaceborne microwave rain-scatterometer are performed by considering user's requirements to observe rain, the restrictions derived from the interface with satellite and the state of the art and the possibility of spaceborne microwave technology. Characteristic parameters for spaceborne microwave rain-scatterometer are determined based on the user's requirements for the system. Functions and performances of each subsystem (antenna, transmitters, receivers and data transmission processor) with the detailed block diagram of the total system of spaceborne microwave rain-scatterometer are shown. All of the critical items of hardware in the development of spaceborne microwave rain-scatterometer are also discussed.