The longer the time delay between sending a pulse and receiving the reflection, the farther away the storm from the radar site. Because the speed of the pulse transmission is known (nearly the speed of light), and the time between transmitting the pulse and receiving the reflection is known, the distance can be calculated. The pulses are reflected from rain, hail, debris, bugs and any number of other sources. Then, the radar listens for the reflections. A short-duration pulse is emitted from the radar dish during the transmit cycle. How it worksĭoppler radar is basically a transmitter and receiver of microwave radiation. For weather purposes, it was discovered almost accidentally during World War II, where early radar installations kept seeing “noise” when they were looking for enemy bombers.Ĭurrently, Doppler radar is used for tracking precipitation and storms, and the data interpretation performed by a combination of computers and meteorologists is disseminated through media outlets for consumption by the general public. What is Doppler radar?ĭoppler radar can be described by the two terms, Doppler, involving the Doppler Effect, and radar, which is an acronym for radio direction and ranging. The trick is learning how radar works and what limitations it has before jumping to conclusions about what is going on in the sky. However commonplace Doppler radar may appear, it is an incredibly useful tool for analyzing storms by both meteorologists and amateur weather geeks alike.

Southeast weather radar in motion