Cloudburst

Ground Clutter

Ground clutter is a pattern of radar echoes from fixed targets around the radar. Ground clutter can also hide or disrupt precipitation echoes near the radar antenna.

Anomalous propagation (A.P.) occurs with temperature or moisture gradients near the radar that cause part of the radar to bend abnormally. The beam of the radar can be turned into the ground or can bend upward. Both types of A.P. can make it look like there are large areas of rain or snow falling right around the radar. A.P. is most often visible at night with high amounts of moisture. Yellow and green are the most common colors that show up on the Doppler during anomalous propagation. The false returns are most common during nighttime hours when cooler temperatures and more moisture is pumped into the atmosphere adding to the bending of the radar beam.