Title: VIPR Analysis and RF Source Development for Future Spaceborne Deployment
Presenting Author: Ken Cooper
Organization: NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Co-Author(s): Luis MIllan, Matthew Lebsock, Jose Siles, Raquel Rodriguez Monje, Juan Socuellamos, Robert Dengler, Nitika Yurk, Jack Tucek, and Ken Kreischer

Abstract:
VIPR (Vapor Inside-cloud Profiling Radar) is a 159-175 GHz differential absorption radar that has proven, from both airborne and ground deployments, to be effective at retrieving absolute humidity inside of clouds and precipitation. This talk will present analysis of VIPR’s most recent field measurements, with a focus on the development of “rules of thumb” for quantifying measurement variance arising from random and systematic sources of uncertainty. This approach is applied to an envisioned spaceborne version of VIPR, where there is a tradeoff between the host satellite resources and VIPR’s ability to map water vapor with good resolution in the along-track and vertical directions. Finally, an update will be provided on both NASA (through ACT-20) and JPL (via internal investment) supported activities to develop high-power, broad-band transmitter sources for VIPR using vacuum electronic devices and free-space power combining, respectively.