Better storm forecasts coming with higher tech radar

September 30, 2011

MSNBC – When it comes to storm forecasting, there’s a new national leader. Washington state this week deployed an advanced Doppler weather radar that uses “dual polarization” — a technology that better predicts rain amount and even see if a twister is hiding inside a storm.

By the end of October, its two other Doppler radars should be upgraded as well, making Washington the first in the nation to be fully dual polarized.

The new radar is “the first addition to the nation’s weather radar network since the 1990s,” National Weather Service Director Jack Hayes said at the dedication on Thursday in Copalis Beach, Wash.

Dual polarization, he added, provides “significantly more information and clearer pictures of precipitation and severe weather to help National Weather Service meteorologists provide more accurate and timely forecasts.”

The service hopes to add the technology to all of its 169 Doppler radars within a few years.

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