What Does Radar Actually See?

What We Know vs. What We Don't

METAR reports the cloud base (bottom of the lowest BKN/OVC layer). It tells us nothing about cloud tops. Therefore: if the beam is below the cloud base → definite miss (radar sampling clear air). If the beam is at or above the cloud base, it may be inside the cloud — but we can't confirm it sees the precipitating layer without cloud top data. Soundings add thermodynamic context: beam temperature, freezing level, precipitable water, and low-level lapse rate let us characterize what kind of atmosphere the radar is sampling, even if we can't close the cloud-top question.