BendixKing IN-182A System RDR-2000 - Manual (Page 26)

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Effective Date: 5/98 RDR 2000 Pilot's Guide: Rev 3
not be much more than a blunt projection or a scalloped edge of the
parent thunderstorm echo.
A crescent-shaped indentation on the side of a major thunderstorm echo
3 to 7 miles long is another possible identifier of an active or potential tor-
nado in the vicinity.
The best procedure is to make wider than usual detours around sharp-
edged thunderstorms and especially those which show projections or
crescent-shaped indentations.
HAIL
Hail usually has a film of water on its surface, consequently, a hailstone
is often reflected as a very large water particle. Because of the film and
because hail stones usually are larger than raindrops, thunderstorms
with large amounts of wet hail return stronger signals than those with
rain. Although wet hail is an excellent reflector of radar energy, some
hail shafts are extremely small (100 yards or less). These narrow shafts
make poor radar targets.
Hail shafts are usually identified with four different characteristic patterns:
(1) fingers and protrusions, (2) hooks, (3) scalloped edges on the cloud
outline and (4) U-shaped cloud edges 3 to 7 miles across.
Weather Mapping and Interpretation
Finger Hook
Scalloped Edge U-Shaped