The Impact of Lightning Rods on the Differential Reflectivity of X-Band Radar

Lightning rod configuration is crucial in radar stations. With widespread application of dual-polarisation technology, lightning rods have a significant impact on radar differential reflectivity, particularly for X-band radars with shorter wavelengths. Quantitative analyses and methods for reducing the impact of lightning rods on radar data quality have become particularly important. In this study, lightning rods of two different sizes were configured on Beijing’s Fangshan X-band radar to perform antenna far-field tests and precipitation process comparative observation tests, and to conduct a quantitative impact assessment of the antenna electrical performance parameters and radar differential reflectivity. First, far-field tests were conducted on the impact of small- and original-diameter lightning rods on the Fangshan X-band radar. The results showed that the horizontal polarisation beam width was reduced by 0.081 and 0.08°, while the vertical polarisation beam width was reduced by 0.02 and 0.11°, respectively. Second, light rain or snowfall with a signal-to-noise ratio greater than 15 dB, and a correlation coefficient greater than 0.985, were selected for comparative observation. When other environmental influences could not be isolated, the original lightning rod showed a maximum ZDR value of 1.32 dB and a maximum azimuth span of 35°. The maximum ZDR value of the small-diameter lightning rod was 0.18 dB and the maximum azimuth span was 20°; however, its deviation from the theoretical maximum value is only 0.05 dB. Therefore, once the system configuration is determined, the design of an appropriate lightning rod scheme can effectively improve radar data quality.