Weather Radar

Radar bounces radio waves off water particles in clouds Click on image for full size (19K JPEG) Radar is important to weather forecastors because it tells where rain and hail are. It bounces radio waves off water particles in clouds. A computer measures how long it takes for the waves to reflect back and then uses the time to calculate how far the particle is away from the radar. It also measures how much energy is backscattered (reflected back to the radar) and can tell how much precipitation is in the clouds. A new kind of radar called Doppler radar can do a lot more. It not only can figure out how far away a raindrop is, it can also calculate if it's moving toward or away from the radar. Meteorologists know that if the rain is moving, then the wind must be pusing it. That's how they can tell where the wind is blowing in clouds.

Current U.S. Radar

Last modified July 31, 2008 by Vanessa Pearce.
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