Weather Radar NWA Remote Sensing Committee

The WSR-88D Doppler radar (NEXRAD) represents the backbone of the severe weather warning system in the United States for both the National Weather Service (NWS) and Department of Defense (DoD). There are a total of 164 NEXRAD sites in the U. S., including Alaska, Guam, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. There are also many Doppler radars operated by major market television stations. A more specialized weather radar for the detection of microbursts in the vicinity of some large airports is the Terminal Doppler Weather Radar (TDWR), operated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Installation of dual polarization capabilities, which will allow better determination of precipitation phase and particle sizes, is well underway. A new technology that will emerge later in the decade is Phased Array Radar, an adaptation of military technology that will allow faster scan rates. A dual wavelength radar system to help detect hazardous aircraft icing is now under development. Listed below are some resources for information on weather radars. The list of commercial vendors does not necessarily represent official endorsement by the NWA.

Dual-Pol Radar Resources List (Books and Journal articles)

General Information on WSR-88D Radars

• WSR-88D radar site map
• Status of dual-polarization upgrade
• WFO Wind Farm Fact Sheet

Aviation Weather radars and products

• Aviation Weather Display (FAA)
• Terminal Doppler Weather Radar (TDWR)

Radar Research

• Center for Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere (CASA), U. Mass. Amherst
• National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL)
• OFCM Report on Phased Array Radars

Current Radar Data

• Local NEXRAD sitesCollege of DuPage, IL
• National Weather Service (NOAA)
• US Composite/Loop
• (UNISYS Corp.)
  • US Composite Loop (WSI Corporation)
  • US Composite Radar/satellite Loop (Freese-Notis Corporation)
  • Local NEXRAD Images (NCAR Research Applications Lab)
  • U.S. Composite with GIS background (NCDC, Asheville, NC)
  • RIDGE display in GIS (NOAA/NWS)
  Radar Derived Products
  • NCEP Multi-sensor Stage II Precipitation
  • NCEP Multi-sensor Stage IV Precipitation
  Commercial Radar Vendors (For information only; not an endorsement by the NWA)
  • Advanced Designs Corp.
  • Baron Services, Inc.
  • Ellason Weather Radar
  • Enterprise Electronics, Inc.
  • EWR Radar Systems
  • Radtech Engineering, Inc.
  • Rockwell Collins
  Training Resources on Weather Radars
  • Dual-polarization (NOAA Warning Decision Training Branch, Norman, OK)
  • Dual-Pol Radar Resources List (Books and Journal articles)
  • Radar Tutorials (NOAA NWS)
  • University of Illinois tutorial
  • Severewx.com
  • WeatherTap.com
  • L. R. Lemon Meteorological Services
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  For questions please contact Gary Ellrod Last modified - 4 April 2020