That's no storm. That's a wind farm.

It’s time for yet another podcast of… That Weather Show… brought to you by the NOAA Weather Partners.  I’m Angelyn Kolodziej.

It’s always raining near Spearville, Kansas.  At least it appears to be when forecasters like Larry Ruthi look at radar displays.  Turns out, what looks like thunderstorms are actually rotating wind turbine blades.  Wind farms are popping up all over as renewable energy becomes a high priority for the nation.  But when they’re built near existing radars, new challenges arise for the NOAA National Weather Service.

Larry has worked at the Dodge City, Kansas Weather Forecast Office for more than sixteen years and has plenty of experience with this issue.

Wind Farm near Spearville, KS

Ruthi: “A wind farm on radar looks very much like an echo from a precipitation target or a shower or thunderstorm.  As the meteorological target moves through a wind farm – particularly if its close to the radar site – the return from the wind farm and the blades that are rotating around the antennas on the wind farm will mix with the return from the showers of t-storms and its a particular problem if its a severe weather event.”

So what’s causing this?  Let’s step back for a minute and talk about how the radar works.  A signal is sent out into the atmosphere.  That signal bounces off things like raindrops or hailstones and returns to the antenna.  The data are displayed for weather forecasters to use.  But the signal also reflects from non-weather objects like trees and mountains.  By detecting the lack of motion, radar can easily filter out these non-moving objects.  However, wind farms near the radar create a unique challenge.

Ruthi: “The towers don’t move but the blades rotate around the tops of those towers.  It makes it very difficult for our algorithm to filter those out.  So there’s a difficult conundrum that we’re dealing with there in trying to filter out the non-meteorological targets and still retaining as best we can the returns that we have from the meteorological targets.”

Wind turbine blade clutter near Montezuma, Kansas resembles a tornado signature.

The cluttered displays can be misleading for anyone using the radar data.  They can also affect the accuracy of forecasts.  Severe weather events like microbursts and tornadoes are sometimes difficult to identify.  Estimating rainfall in the area is also a challenge.

To work around this issue, forecasters must know the location and characteristics of wind farms on radar.  Scanning at higher altitudes can give forecasters a view above the rotating turbine blades.  Additional cooperative efforts may also be possible.

Ruthi: “There’s perhaps an opportunity to work together with the wind farm owners and managers to perhaps – for a short period of time each year when severe thunderstorms affect the wind farm area – to shut down the turbines that we would then be able to examine uncontaminated returns throughout the entire radar umbrella and make valid decisions without the problem of dealing with the wind farms.”

As for future wind farm development, it’s all about location, location, location.  Research shows wind farm impacts generally decrease the farther they are from the radar.  Reaching out to developers at early planning stages is a key focus for the National Weather Service.  By working together, everyone wins.  Larry and other forecasters have a clear view of the weather.  Developers build wind farms in strategic places.  And the public has access to cheaper, cleaner energy AND the best weather information possible.

Thanks for listening to another podcast of… That Weather Show… brought to you by the NOAA Weather Partners.

For more information about wind farm interaction with NEXRAD radar, visit: http://www.roc.noaa.gov/WSR88D/WindFarm/WindFarm_Index_GreatFalls.aspx?wid=*

NWS forecaster Forrest Mitchell ties a parachute to the balloon.

It’s time for yet another podcast of… That Weather Show… brought to you by the NOAA Weather Partners.  I’m Angelyn Kolodziej.

“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”.

That saying certainly fits weather balloons.  Today, the NOAA National Weather Service relies on the same principles established over two centuries ago.  Here are the basics: A balloon uses gas to rise to a high altitude.  Attached to the balloon is a data-gathering device.  While rising, it measures things like temperature, pressure, and humidity.  The result is a three-dimensional snapshot of the atmosphere.  This is essential information for weather forecasts and research.  Once the balloon reaches maximum height, it bursts and descends back to Earth.

Preparing the radiosonde

This isn’t to say that things haven’t improved over the years.  When the French pioneered the technology in the late eighteen hundreds, scientists had to actually track down the fallen device to collect data.  This might not seem that bad… except that during the balloon’s rise, it can drift more than a hundred miles away.  You can imagine how difficult it was to find those things.

In the nineteen thirties, a solution arrived.  A radiosonde – equipped with a transmitter – now made it possible to have instant data feedback.

Even with all our advanced technology – weather balloons are still the best tool for the job.  Understanding the atmosphere above is crucial for forecasting the weather below.

Ready to launch!

Today there are nearly nine hundred ballooning stations worldwide – ninety-two by the National Weather Service.  The balloons are typically launched at the same time twice a day.  The data have many uses – from aviation and marine forecasts to climate research.

Call it an “oldie but goodie”… a “classic that never dies”… one things for sure, weather ballooning is here to stay.

Thanks for listening to another podcast of… That Weather Show… brought to you by the NOAA Weather Partners.

Video length: 4:20 min. [cc]

What is dual polarization technology? Why should you care? On this episode of That Weather Show, we answer those questions by using parodies of our favorite commercials.

Hosted by Cat Taylor, 2009 Miss Oklahoma International / Univ. of Oklahoma Meteorology Student.

You can also watch this video on the NOAA Weather Partners Youtube channel .

Video length: 4:19 min. [cc]

That Weather Show is a video/podcast series brought to you by the NOAA Weather Partners in Norman, OK. We’re dedicating this first video episode to the brave scientists whose mission is to hunt tornadoes.

Hosted by Cat Taylor, 2009 Miss Oklahoma International / Univ. of Oklahoma Meteorology Student.

Michael Coniglio and Pamela Heinselman

Research scientists studying improvements in tornado forecasting and new radar systems at the NOAA National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Okla., Michael C. Coniglio and Pamela L. Heinselman, received presidential commendation when they were awarded the prestigious 2009 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) at a ceremony Jan. 13 at the White House.

The award, which was conferred by President Obama, is the highest honor bestowed by the United States government on outstanding scientists and engineers in the early stages of their careers. An award ceremony is planned in Washington, D.C. in the fall.

“It is quite remarkable to have two researchers from NSSL win this prestigious award in one year,” said James Kimpel, National Severe Storms Laboratory Director. “It speaks well for the future of our lab to have these outstanding young people on board.”

Working in the NOAA Hazardous Weather Testbed, Coniglio is a key player in collaborations to evaluate experimental numerical weather models and bring that cutting edge research to forecasters, ultimately improving forecasts. This spring he helped set up the Operations Center and joined scientists in the field for VORTEX2, the largest and most ambitious field experiment in history to explore tornadoes.

Mike Coniglio in VORTEX2. Objects in the mirror may be larger than they appear.

Heinselman has led the National Weather Radar Testbed Phased Array Radar Demonstration project for several years. Her research focuses on the use of radar data to improve tornado warning lead times. She has served as a mentor to numerous undergraduate and graduate meteorology students, encouraging the next generation of scientists.

“In honoring these scientists early in their careers, we recognize both their achievements to date and the promise of their continued contributions to the nation,” said Jane Lubchenco, Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator. “NOAA takes great pride in these individuals and in its entire complement of stellar science.”

NSSL scientist David Stensrud and former NSSL researcher Erik Rasmussen are past recipients of the honor.

The National Severe Storms Laboratory serves the nation by working to improve the lead time and accuracy of severe weather warnings and forecasts in order to save lives and reduce property damage. NSSL scientists are committed to their mission to understand the causes of severe weather and explore new ways to use weather information to assist National Weather Service forecasters and federal, university, and private sector partners.

Pam Heinselman with student. "It's fun to watch them grow."

The Presidential Early Career Awards embody the high priority the Administration places on producing outstanding scientists and engineers to advance the nation’s goals and contribute to all sectors of the economy. Nine federal departments and agencies join together annually to nominate the most meritorious young scientists and engineers — researchers whose early accomplishments show the greatest promise for strengthening America’s leadership in science and technology and contributing to the awarding agencies’ missions.

The awards, established by President Clinton in February 1996, are coordinated by the Office of Science and Technology Policy within the Executive Office of the President. Awardees are selected on the basis of two criteria: pursuit of innovative research at the frontiers of science and technology and a commitment to community service as demonstrated through scientific leadership, public education or community outreach. Winning scientists and engineers receive up to a five-year research grant to further their study in support of critical government missions.

Harold Brooks, Research Meteorologist: A lot of the really interesting weather observations take place on a much finer scale than we can see with the routine observations.

Burgess: And even today, with the great increase in the power of computers and all of the important numerical modeling work, we still couldn’t do everything without having the verification of what’s going on, and to get that verification we have to go to the field.

Narrator: The Union City tornado in 1973 was a landmark event for weather research. Storm intercept teams observed and documented the entire lifecycle of the storm. When combined with data from Doppler radar, scientists gained new understanding of storm formation and the early signs of a tornado.

Union City tornado

Today, the National Severe Storms Lab is one of the leading organizations in the world at collecting meteorological observations in the field. The tools have advanced over the years, allowing researchers to take their instruments to the storm.

Brooks: One of the things that makes us unique is our ability to create instruments that collect high quality meteorological observations and deploy them remotely and to deploy them on mobile vehicles. NSSL pioneered doing mobile balloon soundings, pioneered what’s now called the mobile mesonet, which we can essentially instrument cars and collect data that are almost the same quality as stationary meteorological observations, from vehicles while they’re moving.

Narrator: Mobile ballooning research includes the recent TELEX project. This has led to increased understanding of the basic structure and evolution of electricity in thunderstorms.

Balloon launch

Dave Rust, Director, Field Observing Facilities Support: This basic knowledge advancement is what it takes to then begin to move things into models and test them with theory as well.

Narrator: Mobile capabilities were critical to the success of VORTEX, a large field project in the mid-1990s, focused on tornadoes.

Burgess: The first VORTEX was our first time with mobile radars, a lot more mobile instrumentation than ever before, mobile mesonet instead of stationary mesonet sites, to go out and study supercells in great detail.

Narrator: Newer mobile radars have been built in the past decade.

Louis Wicker, Research Meteorologist: So we can do a lot of things with mobile radar. We can bring them to the events, whether it’s a tornadic storm, whether it’s a hurricane at landfall, or whether it’s to a valley in California that’s been devastated by wildfire.

SMART-R in California

Narrator: For instance, SMART radars have been used recently for studying vast mountain areas in California. The devastation from wildfires leaves the area susceptible to debris flows – a direct result of heavy rainfall.

Jorgensen: Our main scientific interest is improving the ability of radar to make quantitative precipitation estimates, and so the Hydromet testbed project was really designed to improve services directed toward improved water estimates.

Narrator: With multiple vehicles in the field, coordination becomes extremely important. Advances in technology allow NSSL scientists to communicate and efficiently collect data.

Rust: Basically a coordinator vehicle is a shell that’s got research power; it’s got computer hookups; it’s got satellite interconnections it’s all there except the people and how they want to run their programs. So it’s versatility. You have one vehicle that does many tasks. We’ve been on hurricanes with them, severe storms, winter storms. They’re just a great tool.

View from the P-3

Narrator: NSSL scientists have also been heavily involved in the NOAA P-3 aircraft and collecting data from airborne platforms.

Brooks: Scientists have been involved in projects based out of NSSL and around the world because of their expertise in the use of the aircraft to collect data while flying. You can get to places a lot quicker, obviously. And you can do a lot more sampling of airborne observations.

Narrator: This spring, NSSL and several partners will undertake one of the most ambitious field projects ever: VORTEX2. Using multiple instruments to collect intensive data sets, scientists hope to answer basic questions about tornadoes: their origins, structure and evolution. Ultimately, this will increase the accuracy and timeliness of tornado forecasts and warnings.

Tornado damage

Wicker: The eventual goal of all this is that if we understand really how tornadoes form then hopefully will see some precursors of the cloud above the tornado where the radars can scan that will help us be better predictors of whether this storm is really going to produce a tornado or not and even more importantly whether it might produce a strong tornado versus not. A strong tornado has the potential to do a lot of damage and kill people much higher than even a weak tornado. So the ability to differentiate that might be very important.

Narrator: While field research is a critical job for NSSL scientists, it is also an opportunity to witness nature’s most fascinating spectacles face to face.

Burgess: Just seeing the storm is awe-inspiring. You just see all this display, and you can’t help but be impressed at the magnitude of what you see. Just the storm is enough, but then you add a tornado on top of that and it really just overwhelms your senses.

Mobile mesonet follows the storm

Narrator: With their respect for nature’s power and their creativity in developing tools to measure it, NSSL scientists have proven over and over the importance of field research.

Rust: I think that if we want to consider ourselves to be well-rounded scientifically we’ve got to have the observational component in there, whether it’s done with radars or balloons or other instrumentation and facilities, it doesn’t matter. We’ve just got to have it. The community as a whole needs it, and that’s so that we can advance our models, our theory, and test those theories.

Want to know more?

• VORTEX2
• SMART Radars
• Field Observing Equipment

Forecasters at the NOAA National Weather Service use NEXRAD radar as their primary tool for observing, monitoring, and forecasting the weather. The Radar Operations Center plays a crucial role in supporting the forecasters’ day-to-day operations.

David Andra: “In the short term, the support role of the Radar Operations Center helps us keep the radars running reliably. In the longer term, the development and modernization efforts that go on there help move the technology forward, which then allows us to do more.”

The NOAA National Severe Storms Lab researches and develops new tools and techniques to improve the radar. Once proven, these new tools must be placed in the hands of the forecaster.

Kurt Hondl: “The Radar Operations Center is responsible for taking that research technology and implementing it on the national network. Without them in the process, the research techniques that we develop here stay here. They don’t make it into the operational system. So the Radar Operations Center is an important part of that process to make sure that things we identify here are implemented in the operational network so all of the forecasters have benefit of it.”

Rich Vogt: “The NEXRAD program was a collaboration of three departments: the Department of Transportation, Department of Defense, and Department of Commerce. Working together, they could fund this network of radars in a more economical way than each of the agencies could on their own. They also formed this Radar Operations Center with tri-agency staffing and funding.”

In 1988, the Center was established in Norman, Oklahoma. The location was based on its proximity to the National Severe Storms Lab and the University of Oklahoma’s radar meteorology program.

The work done by the Radar Operations Center requires a wide variety of specialties, including meteorology, engineering, programming, radar technology, and many others. A twenty-four hour hotline provides assistance to radar field sites across the country, as well as some international locations. Technicians also travel to radar sites, providing assistance for maintenance and support activities.

Currently, the Radar Operations Center is collaborating on a major improvement to the radar network. Dual Polarization technology allows the radar to send and receive both horizontal and vertical pulses. This simultaneous signal will give more information about the size and shape of particles in the atmosphere.

Scott Saul: “So overall, what Dual Pol is going to do is it’s going to allow the forecaster to be more accurate and be more precise with their forecast. They’re going to know when it’s going to hail and where it’s going to hail. They’re going to know when winter precipitation is going to be light rain vs. heavy rain vs. snow.  The difference between six inches of snow and maybe half an inch of rain is just huge. That’ll allow the forecasters to say which of those scenarios is going to occur. Emergency managers then are able to put salt on the roads or not. So it’s really going to make the public a lot safer from that aspect, as well.”

Acting as the bridge between research and warnings, the mission of the Radar Operation Center is vital to our nation’s weather safety.

Rich Vogt: “The number one goal is to keep this fleet of radars running at a very high availability rate to provide reliable data and high quality data needed by the forecasters to put out warnings for severe weather and tornadoes.”

Daphne Thompson is a meteorologist and the NOAA Weather Partners Outreach Coordinator.

Daphne: Welcome to another edition of That Weather Show.  I’m Daphne Thompson.  My guests today are meteorologists who work in different areas of the National Weather Center. We’ll be talking to them about their careers and discussing other options available for meteorology graduates.  Why don’t you go ahead and introduce yourselves?

Patrick: My name is Patrick Burke.  I am a meteorologist and general forecaster here at the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Norman, Oklahoma.

Pam: My name is Pam Heinselman.  I am a research meteorologist with the National Severe Storms Laboratory.

Jeff: I’m Jeff Evans and I’m currently a lead forecaster at the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma.

Daphne: Let’s start with you Jeff, why don’t tell us about some of your duties there.

Jeff Evans, lead forecaster at the Storm Prediction Center.

Jeff: The ultimate duty is maintaining the continual weather watch for severe weather in the United States.  I have the ultimate responsibility of all the watches, tornado or severe thunderstorm watches, anywhere in the lower forty-eight states.

Daphne: And you also do research?

Jeff: Yes, we do research.  SELS, which is now the Storm Prediction Center, has always been cutting-edge as far as implementing science into operations, especially whe it comes to severe storms.  And a lot of what’s commonly used today in severe storms forecasting, things that people take for granted, really all came out of a ground roots effort of forecasters at the Storm Prediction Center.  Between maintaining the knowledge and the science and going to conferences and reading lots of papers and understanding that “hey, this is something we can actually implement in operations” and try to begin getting tools and building tools to put that into operations.  There’s certainly a lot of research involved.

Daphne: Pam, let’s talk about what you do at the National Severe Storms Lab. I know your research involves weather radar. Can you talk about that?

Pam Heinselman, research meteorologist with CIMMS working at the National Severe Storms Lab.

Pam: Yes, I do spend some of my time analyzing radar data, which gives me information about severe storms, in particular, tornadic storms, hailstorms, high wind events, things like that.  But then I also spend a lot of time with students.  I’m an adjunct professor at the University of Oklahoma.  I advise graduate students on their curriculum and on their research projects that they’re doing and I give a lot of presentations to visitors.  We have collaborators who come here and want to learn more about I do.  The specific topic that I work on is the implementation of Phased Array Radar and so that’s a big part of what I do but lots of activities go on in my day.

Daphne: Patrick, can you tell us some of the different types of things you do as a meteorologist for the National Weather Service?

Patrick: First and foremost, the biggest part of our mission at the National Weather Service is to provide public forecasts and warnings for severe weather to protect life and property.  Those are the days we really shine and when there’s a tornado outbreak or a hurricane, when there’s winter weather and ice storms, something of that nature.  We’re working around the clock everyday of the year, even in quiet weather to prepare for those things.  We forecast for airports, river levels and river flooding.  But then there’s also the everyday, seven-day forecast and that type of thing so a lot of diversity to the work.

Daphne: Besides forecasting, what other fields in meteorology can today’s graduate consider?

Patrick Burke, forecaster at the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Norman.

Patrick: Some of the specific fields you can pursue – you know, I chose the forecasting route, operational meteorology.  There’s also the research meteorology that we’ve spoken about and the opportunities in that, whether you go into a government organization or private firm, there’s certainly a lot of research going on.  Some other areas that you could focus on are communications, mass media, broadcasting meteorologist.  I think business is catching on to how weather affects things like energy, insurance companies – I know a lot of meteorologists have gone into that field.  Aviation is another one.  There’s some airlines that hire their own meteorologists.

Daphne: Jeff, you’ve had a lot of job experience in the area of forecasting.  Looking back, what advice would you give students who are trying to decide on a specific career path?

Jeff: I think people shouldn’t set their goals too specific.  I don’t think you should say “I want to work at the Hurricane Center and that’s all I’m going to be satisfied with”.  That’s very unrealistic.  Or the Storm Prediction Center.  There are very few positions, they’re very difficult to get.  Not that that can’t happen.  It happened for me.  It happened for other people.  Basically, if you’re interested in it, I’d follow through with it and just keep an open mind and you might be surprised what you end up falling into and what opportunities you end up stumbling into that you really enjoy.  The more flexible you are to take advantage of that, the better your career will probably take off.

Daphne: I think that’s very good advice.

Well, it’s time to wrap up for today.  Jeff, Pam, and Patrick, thanks for stopping by.  You have given my listeners some great information about what you do here at the National Weather Center.  I am sure that your career advice will help give meteorology graduates a better understanding of what types of jobs are available out there.

Alright, so next time on That Weather Show, we’ll be talking about our guests’ early childhood memories that sparked an interest in weather, as well as some cool weather-related hobbies.  I hope you can join us again.

Many people in automobiles have been killed trying to outdrive a tornado

It’s time for yet another podcast of That Weather Show brought to you by the NOAA Weather Partners in Norman, Oklahoma. I’m Rachel Forsyth.

Fact or Myth? Hiding under an overpass is a safe shelter from a tornado. Stay tuned for the answer.

If you’re driving on the road and see a tornado or hear a tornado warning over the radio for your location, you need to seek shelter immediately. Park your vehicle as quickly and safely as possible, without blocking traffic. Get out and seek shelter in a nearby sturdy building. If you are in the open country, get to low ground or a ditch – away from cars and trees. Lie flat, face-down, and cover your head with your hands.

A tornado can easily lift a vehicle and toss it through the air, as was the case in the May 3, 1999 Oklahoma tornadoes.

A tornado can easily lift a vehicle and toss it through the air. Many people have been killed while trying to outrun a tornado. Although it’s sometimes possible to flee the area, it’s generally not a good idea. You can run into problems like blocked roads or traffic jams. Plus, some tornadoes are wrapped in rain – making them difficult to see.

It’s very important to be prepared and stay alert to weather conditions – especially during times when severe weather is possible. Information about tornado watches and warnings are available from NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards.

Okay, now let’s go back to our question. Fact or Myth? Hiding under an overpass is a safe shelter from a tornado. It may seem safer than a ditch – but it’s just a myth. The winds from the tornado could cause serious injuries from the flying debris or even blow you out from your hiding spot. Seek shelter in a secure structure or low-lying area.

Thanks for listening to another podcast of That Weather Show brought to you by the NOAA Weather Partners in Norman, Oklahoma. I’m Rachel Forsyth.

A world-wide network of 167 NEXRAD radars provides weather coverage for the entire United States and select international locations. The formal name of the radar is the WSR-88D – which stands for “Weather Surveillance Radar 1988″—for the year the design was established—and D, for “Doppler.”

The radar network is supported by the Radar Operations Center in Norman, Oklahoma. Their job is to keep the radars running smoothly and improve radar technology and capabilities. To maintain peak performance from all radars, the Radar Operations Center help desk offers 24-hour expert assistance to radar technicians around the world. Hardware and software upgrades apply new science and increase radar productivity. The support provided by the Radar Operations Center allows the radar network to deliver continuous, reliable weather coverage to its users.

The radar collects data by sending a radio signal out to a target. The signal bounces off the target—raindrops, in this case—and returns to the radar. The returned signal conveys three important properties of the target:

First, the time it takes for the signal to bounce off the target and return determines the distance from the target to the radar unit, and thus the location of the storm.

Second, the strength of the returned signal, also known as reflectivity, is proportional to the size and number of raindrops in the storm.

* Third, the frequency of the returned signal reveals whether the winds are moving toward or away from the radar, as well as their speeds. The combination of speed and direction is called “velocity.”

The data is converted into visual images and used by the National Weather Service forecasters, the Federal Aviation Administration, and the military to provide weather support to the nation. In addition, selected visual images are made available on the web and shown on TV weather broadcasts. Radar data is also used by private companies and studied by university researchers to improve forecasts.

Forecasters use the continuous, immediate weather information provided by radar to track storms and warn the public of dangerous weather. Radar allows forecasters to see all types of weather and provide advanced warning for thunderstorms, hail, tornadoes, hurricanes, wildfires, flash floods, snow, and freezing precipitation.

A recent study proved Doppler radar helped reduce tornado deaths and injuries by nearly half, nationwide. By using Doppler radar, forecasters have increased the average tornado warning lead time to nearly thirteen minutes.

Outside of the National Weather Service, other groups use Doppler radar to collect information about the weather and the atmosphere.

The Federal Aviation Administration benefits from NEXRAD by overlaying weather radar data on air traffic control displays. This capability helps traffic flow managers safely route air traffic and reduce weather delays for travelers.

The Department of Defense uses radar data to help plan missions for land, sea, and air operations. With accurate weather information, the military is able to enhance flight safety, maximize training opportunities, and protect military assets and personnel.

Community leaders use radar to protect their citizens from nature’s destructive forces. Local emergency managers monitor storms on radar and determine their exact locations. This information is used to notify their communities of approaching danger and better coordinate emergency response. Early winter weather forecasts give snow removal crews lead time to plan and react more effectively.

Water management agencies use radar to estimate not only how much rain will fall, but where it will fall. Radar is especially useful for collecting rainfall data where there are spatial gaps between rain gauges. Improved precipitation estimates help water managers monitor and control the water supply.

Homeland security managers can now integrate wind measurements with computer models to determine the exact path of chemical and biological agents released accidentally or as a result of a terrorist attack.

Radar can also detect the density, location, and direction of biological targets like birds, insects, bats and butterflies. For instance, ornithologists use the data to study the flight and migration patterns of birds.

Private meteorological companies can provide tailored products to their customers by adding specialized features and information to NEXRAD data.

Local and national television meteorologists use NEXRAD data to keep their viewers informed of real-time weather conditions. Even if a station has its own weather radar, they will often use regional NEXRAD data to provide a broader view of the weather approaching their area.

Today’s weather radar technology and capabilities are a direct result of decades of research and development. What began as a strategic weapon in World War II has evolved into a world-class weather detection system. Continuous improvements to the radar’s hardware and software have been made since 1988. Recently, new equipment upgrades will allow better detail in the images forecasters see. The next step is dual polarization, an additional capability that allows NEXRAD radar to send and receive both horizontal and vertical pulses. This new information will give meteorologists a better idea of the structure and type of precipitation – resulting in more accurate forecasts. The research done today will continue to give us benefits for years to come.

With its eye to the sky, the NEXRAD radar provides critical information used by a variety of people for many different purposes. It is not only a vital tool for forecasting and researching weather — but for many everyday activities that impact us all.