Weather radar in Nepal: opportunities and challenges in a mountainous region

Talchabhadel, Rocky; Ghimire, Ganesh R.; Sharma, Sanjib; Dahal, Piyush; Panthi, Jeeban; Baniya, Rupesh; Pudashine, Jayaram; Thapa, Bhesh Raj; Shakti, P. C.; Parajuli, Binod

doi:10.1002/wea.3994

Weather radar in Nepal: opportunities and challenges in a mountainous region

Journal Article · Thu Jun 10 00:00:00 EDT 2021 · Weather

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/wea.3994· OSTI ID:1807220

^[1]; ^[2]; Sharma, Sanjib ^[3]; Dahal, Piyush ^[4]; Panthi, Jeeban ^[5]; Baniya, Rupesh ^[6]; Pudashine, Jayaram ^[7]; Thapa, Bhesh Raj ^[8]; Shakti, P. C. ^[9]; Parajuli, Binod ^[10]

Texas A & M Univ. at El Paso, TX (United States)
Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park, PA (United States)
The Small Earth Nepal, Kathmandu (Nepal)
Univ. of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI (United States)
Tribhuvan University, Lalitpur (Nepal)
Bureau of Meteorology, Melbourne (Australia)
Universal Engineering and Science College, Lalitpur (Nepal); Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST), Lalitpur (Nepal)
National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience, Tsukuba (Japan)
Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Kathmandu (Nepal)

Extreme rainfall is one of the major causes of natural hazards in the central Himalayan region, including Nepal. The performance of strategies to manage hazards and related risks relies on the accuracy of quantitative hydrometeorological prediction. Rain gauges have traditionally been used to measure the rainfall amount. However, point measurements with limited gauge coverage cannot accurately represent spatial precipitation variability in complex topography. Weather radar have shown potential for useful information on accurate areal rainfall estimates. The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM) in Nepal installed their first weather radar in 2019 in the western region of the country. Two more radars will be added to the planned radar network in the near future, in the country's central and eastern regions, respectively. We highlight both the opportunities and challenges with radar installation and observation in the mountainous regions. Radar-rainfall estimates across the Himalayas can be useful to inform decision-making in a broad range of infrastructure sectors, including water, energy, construction, transportation, and agriculture.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: AC05-00OR22725

OSTI ID:: 1807220

Journal Information:: Weather, Journal Name: Weather Journal Issue: 5 Vol. 77; ISSN 0043-1656

Publisher:: WileyCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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