Advanced Radar Techniques to Improve Tornado Warnings
According to a recent publication from the National Science Foundation (NSF), recent advances in radar techniques may provide weather forecasters and local officials with more lead time when it comes to issuing warnings for dangerous tornados.
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The announcement comes from scientists at the State University of New York at Stony Brook who say that the improvements can help determine which severe storms are most likely to produce dangerous tornadoes.
“Identifying which storms are going to produce tornadoes and which are not has been a problem that meteorologists have been trying to tackle for decades,” said atmospheric scientist Scott Loeffler of Penn State. “This new research may give forecasters another tool to do that.”
One of the keys in this new radar technology is something known as polarimetric capabilities which allow scientists to determine shape and size of raindrops. After comparing areas with large, sparse raindrops vs. regions dense with smaller drops, in over 100 supercell thunderstorms, researchers found this to be a key differentiator between tornadic and non-tornadic supercells.
“These findings have potentially large implications for the accuracy and confidence of tornado warnings and public safety during severe storms,” said Matthew Kumjian of Penn State and senior author of a paper in Geophysical Research Letters. “We look forward to getting this information in the hands of operational meteorologists to assess the impact it has.”
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