L-band array for ground-based remote sensing of volcanic eruptions

Near-source Doppler radar monitoring of tephra plumes at Etna

“…Although the VOLDORAD 2B radar is owned by the OPGC, the radar data acquired on Etna are shared between INGV-OE and OPGC in the frame of a collaborative research agreement. As part of the same project, a dedicated micro-patch array antenna, well suited for longterm monitoring in harsh conditions in altitude, was also designed and built at the University of Calabria (Boccia et al, 2010) for INGVOE. In this paper we first describe the radar system, data acquisition and processing, and type of retrieved parameters and their integration within the existing monitoring system of INGV-OE.…”

“…Although the regulated electric supply can be maintained for a few minutes by a battery backup, the system is able to restart automatically after longer power interruption, as sometimes occurs following thunderstorms. A dedicated vertically-polarized antenna was designed at the University of Calabria, compound of a 6 × 6 array of shorted rectangular patch antennas (Boccia et al, 2010). This provides a directivity and mitigation of grating lobe effects suitable for the radar surveillance of the summit craters without scanning when the radar was implemented.…”

Erratum to: Lava discharge during Etna’s January 2011 fire fountain tracked using MSG-SEVIRI

“…The system also utilizes a dedicated micropatch antenna designed at the University of Calabria (Boccia et al 2010) and owned by INGV. The objective of the joint acquisition of the radar data by INGV-Catania and the OPGC is twofold: (1) to mitigate volcanic risks at Etna by better assessing the hazards arising from ash plumes and (2) to allow detailed study of volcanic activity and its environmental impact.…”