RADAR upgrade helps Ultimate Doppler 9 become even more powerful

CINCINNATI - This year, before the tornado outbreak of March 2, 9 News installed a brand new, state-of-the-art processor. Ultimate Doppler 9 most powerful RADAR in the Tri-State and delivers information faster than anyone else, allowing us to warn you sooner.  Our goal is to warn you FIRST when severe weather is moving through in order to keep you and your family safe.

On the night of March 2, tornadoes ripped through the Tri-State destroying homes, farms, and lives. Chief Meteorologist Steve Raleigh was able to show how severe the storms were, and where they were heading using Ultimate Doppler 9.

Even with the precision and accuracy of Ultimate Doppler 9, our radar network is getting even better.

Dual-polarization RADAR, or Dual-pol RADAR, has just been installed at the National Weather Service in Wilmington.  This state-of-the-art technology will not only be able to scan storms horizontally, but also vertically, which will help us tell you more!

Seth Binau, the Science and Operations Officer at the National Weather Service said, "One of the biggest advantages of Dual-pol RADAR is the ability to see non-meteorological targets, in other words…dust, debris, twigs, shingles..."

Dual-pol RADAR will be able to show a specific debris signature that is ONLY detected when a tornado is on the ground. In the outbreak of March 2, we were flooded with reports of debris, at the same time that Ultimate Doppler 9 was showing a tornadic signature on RADAR.

With Dual-pol RADAR, we would actually be able to see that debris, acting like a “virtual” spotter, confirming that a tornado was in fact, on the ground.

Binau said that "sometimes tornadoes occur at night, so at two or three in the morning when we don't have spotters out and it's very difficult to see tornadoes, We might get that debris within the data and help us have more confidence that yes, we have a tornado on the ground, which will give us more lead time to those down stream from the tornado." 

Not only will Dual-pol RADAR improve tracking severe storms but it will be essential in keeping you safe from winter weather threats as well.  It will be more precise in identifying the differences between snow, freezing rain, and ice. Dual-pol is now active and in combination with the speed and power of Ultimate Doppler 9, 9 News will be there first with severe weather to help you prepare. 

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