NRCS Backscatter Analysis at Low Grazing Angles with LATPROP Radar Data Collected During the CASPER West Research Campaign

Variations of meteorological parameters within the marine atmospheric boundary layer (MABL) influence radar propagation at low grazing angles as well as the backscatter from the sea surface. The backscatter is predominately a function of the wind, radar frequency, polarization, and grazing angle. The grazing angle is a strong function of the refractive conditions present. Analytical models at low grazing angles fail, thus the five existing empirical models will be analyzed with data collected using the lower atmospheric propagation (LATPROP) radar during the Coupled Air-Sea Processes and EM Ducting Research (CASPER) West research campaign that took place from September-October 2017 off the coast of southern California.