A mobile X-POL weather radar for hydrometeorological applications in the metropolitan area of São Paulo, Brazil

Abstract. This paper presents the first mobile X-band dual-polarization Doppler weather radar termed MXPOL operated by the Laboratory of Hydrometeorology (LABHIDRO) of the University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. It is used in graduate and under graduate courses, real-time monitoring and nowcasting of severe weather in the Metropolitan Area of São Paulo (MASP). It is one of the first of its kind to be used operationally to provide real-time high spatial resolution polarimetric data. MXPOL is an important component of a Hydrometeorological Forecast System (Pereira Filho et al., 2005) for MASP. This manuscript presents some instances of MXPOL polarimetric measurements of weather systems and their respective microphysical, dynamical and boundary layer features that can improve nowcasting.