Figure 1. Rain, hail and debris can be detected by Doppler radar, providing forecasters and insurers with valuable weather insights. (Photo: Forensic Weather Consultants)
Most people are familiar with Doppler radar from television newscasts because it shows where it is raining. However, Doppler radar, also known as Weather Surveillance Radar — 1988 (WSR-88D), is much more valuable to experienced meteorologists because it can confirm whether a tornado is on the ground, whether hail is present in a thunderstorm, where smoke and chemical plumes from large fires are spreading, and other potentially dangerous weather events.
On average, these images are processed every one to six minutes. Doppler radar works by initially sending a pulse of energy into the atmosphere where it intercepts precipitation or objects in the atmosphere. Some of that energy is scattered back to the radar unit, where an intensity value and corresponding color are then generated based on how large of a particle was identified. This comprises the different colors seen on radar images.
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