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Replacement For Aging Doppler Radar Being Tested

Posted by kdawson on from the sounds-like-a-freight-train dept.

longacre writes "Due to its limited range and slow scan times, the backbone of weather prediction in the US since the early 1990s, the NEXRAD radar system, is deeply flawed in the eyes of meteorologists. A new system being tested by researchers at the NOAA and four universities called the Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere (CASA) network aims to fill the holes left by NEXRAD, using radar nodes piggybacked onto existing infrastructure, such as rooftops and cell towers. From the article: 'Based on faster and more comprehensive data collection, [Distributed Collaborative Adaptive Sensing] processing can refocus the CASA radars on a particularly interesting part of a storm (like an area that looks like it might develop a tornado) without losing track of an entire storm cell. "The system is continuously diagnosing the atmosphere and reallocating resources using wireless Internet as a backbone," says [the CASA team director].' Testing has begun in Oklahoma, Houston, and Puerto Rico, and initial installations could begin in 5 years."

8 of 105 comments (clear)

  1. Rednecks. by retech · · Score: 4, Funny

    I use a very tried and true method of weather prediction - Rednecks. If they are by water, there will be a flood. If they are in a trailer park, there will be a tornado. If they are on a hill - a mudslide. In the woods - forest fires.

    We could save millions just watching the rednecks and avoiding those areas.

    As a side note, I do enjoy the "seed-neck" on the news. You know the one, holding a beer with a stained tank top and in their boxers they always say stuff like: "We lost everythin' but we's gonna rebuild cuz this is our home." It's an aluminum can, how much needs to rebuilt?

    1. Re:Rednecks. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      That *whoosh* was the sound of decency passing unnoticed by you.

  2. Accoustic detection- listen for by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    The flying cows.

    1. Re:Accoustic detection- listen for by hcdejong · · Score: 3, Funny

      That's why it's called "doppler": they detect the frequency shift in the "mooooooo"...

  3. Wireless Internet? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    "The system is continuously diagnosing the atmosphere and reallocating resources using wireless Internet as a backbone,"
     
    And by "wireless Internet" does he mean using people's unsecured wireless routers?

    1. Re:Wireless Internet? by lufo · · Score: 4, Funny

      Not necessarily... just anything that could lose connectivity under severe weather condition.

  4. Re:Better prediction means... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    luckily, the jam will resolve itself quickly through natural means

  5. I just died a little inside... by E-Lad · · Score: 2, Funny
    From the article:

    The information is wirelessly transmitted to a central location over a 2-megabit-per-second DS3 connection. Sign me up for those wireless 2Mbit/s T-3s.