The National Weather Radar Testbed at NSSL will shorten the cycle time from weather radar research to National Weather Service operations, leading to increased accuracy and lead-times, and reducing the uncertainty of predicting severe weather events.
A National Weather Radar Testbed established at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Severe Storms Laboratory will provide the meteorological research community with the first phased array radar facility available on a full-time basis. Phased array radar technology may help forecasters of the future provide earlier warnings for tornadoes and other types of severe and hazardous weather.
The SPY-1 radar, developed in the mid-1970's to support tactical operations aboard Navy ships, will be re-engineered to adapt current military technology to civilian use for weather applications. This process proved successful before, when NSSL researchers used surplus military Doppler radar components to develop what became the WSR-88D radar known as NEXRAD. The phased array radar project will begin a new era in NSSL's leadership in the research and development of future generations of weather radar.
Research Partnerships
This initiative will be carried out by a partnership of federal,
private, state and academic groups, including NOAA's National Severe
Storms Laboratory and National Weather Service Radar Operations Center,
Lockheed Martin, U.S. Navy, University of Oklahoma's School of Meteorology
and School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Oklahoma State Regents
for Higher Education, the Federal Aviation Administration, and Basic
Commerce and Industries.
| SCAN TIME | LEAD TIME | |
|---|---|---|
| NEXRAD | 6 min | 11 min |
| PHASED ARRAY | 1 min | 22 min |
Promising New Radar Technology
Early tests of the phased array radar system indicate the technology has the
potential to improve upon the capabilities of the national NEXRAD radar network
in all weather radar applications. Using multiple beams and frequencies to
rapidly scan a volume of the atmosphere, phased array radar reduces the scan
time of weather from six minutes using the current NEXRAD radar to only one
minute, producing fast updates of weather data.
Improved Warning Lead Time
In addition to faster updates, the new system can scan the atmosphere with
more detail at lower elevations than current radar allows and also re-scan
areas of severe weather very quickly, potentially increasing forecasters'
warning lead times as storms rapidly transition to severe modes.
Improved Understanding and Forecasts
The
new technology will gather storm information not currently available,
such as rapid changes in wind fields, to provide more thorough understanding
of storm evolution. This new information should help researchers improve
conceptual storm models and ultimately help them evaluate and improve
storm scale computer models. The data will also be used to initialize
computer models and improve forecasts.
The National Weather Radar Testbed, with an initial cost of $25 million, will help determine if phased array radar will become a significant technology advancement to improve our nation's weather services. Phased array technology is also of interest to the FAA and Homeland Security who see potential for using the radar as an aircraft tracking system.
Already known for their legacy research in Doppler weather radar technology, NSSL scientists are continuing their leadership role in the research and development of future generations of weather radar. The phased array radar project, from research and development to technology transfer and deployment throughout the U.S., is expected to take 10 to 15 years.
Radar construction and installation should be completed summer 2004, with testing expected to begin in the fall.
