On Sun, Apr 10, 2011 at 22:40, Alicia Plotkin <t...@zoom-dsl.com> wrote:
> Hi, > > I just checked the weather forecast for tomorrow, and noticed the > radar had roughly concentric circles of increasing density centered on the > radar site in Binghamton. (Radar is > here<http://radar.weather.gov/radar.php?rid=bgm&product=N0R&overlay=11101111&loop=no>, > but it automatically updates so you may not see what I did at 10:30 PM.) > Is that migrating birds? > > "Ground clutter" is common within 20 miles of a radar source. Wikipedia says: "Clutter (also termed *ground clutter*) is a form of radar signal contamination. It occurs when fixed objects close to the transmitter—such as buildings, trees, or terrain (hills, ocean swells and waves)—obstruct a radar beam and produce echoes. The echoes resulting from ground clutter may be large in both areal size and intensity. The effects of ground clutter fall off as range increases usually due to the curvature of the earth and the tilt of the antenna above the horizon. Without special processing techniques, targets can be lost in returns from terrain on land or waves at sea." -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html 3) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
