Beam former development for the NASA Hurricane Imaging Radiometer

The Hurricane Imaging Radiometer (HIRAD) is an airborne passive microwave synthetic aperture radiometer designed to provide high resolution, wide swath imagery of surface wind speed in tropical cyclones from a low profile planar array antenna. This paper will present the array radiometer system concept and summarize its development, including multiple flight tests on NASA´s Genesis and Rapid Intensification Processes (GRIP, 2010) and Hurricane and Severe Storm Sentinel (HS3, 2012) campaigns. The paper will focus on the design goals, trades, and approach for the array antenna along-track beam former. The paper presents details of the beam former design, implementation, integration approach, and measured performance. The paper concludes with a description of planned improvements for the next generation dual-polarized HIRAD antenna and the resulting impacts on the beam former design and integration.