Warning Improvements
Identifying Radar Signatures of Severe Weather
- Through the use of simulated Doppler radar signatures,
forecasters develop understandings of how to properly interpret Doppler
velocity and reflectivity signatures of severe weather features.
Since the early 1980s, NSSL researchers have been producing simulated Doppler velocity and reflectivity signatures of various severe weather features. The simulations serve two purposes: (1) to teach Doppler radar users how to properly interpret signatures seen on Doppler radar displays and (2) to illustrate under what conditions severe weather phenomena can be degraded when sampled by a radar. An updated version of the highly popular "A Guide for Interpreting Doppler Velocity Patterns", originally produced in 1987, is now available on this web site.
