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- Author or Editor: Hidde Leijnse x
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Abstract
Weather radars provide us with colorful images of storms, their development, and their movement, but from time to time the radars fail and we are left without data. To minimize these disruptions, owners of weather radars carry out preventive maintenance.
The European radar project Operational Programme for the Exchange of Weather Radar Information (OPERA) conducted a survey among technicians from 21 countries on their experiences of maintenance. Regular maintenance frequency varies widely from as frequent as weekly to as infrequent as 6 months. Results show that the primary causes of missing data are not the failure of radar components and software or lack of maintenance but rather issues with the electricity supplies or telecommunications. Where issues are with the radars themselves, they are most commonly with the transmitter or the antenna controllers. Faults can be repaired quickly, but, if certain parts are required or the site is very remote, a radar can be out of service for weeks or even months. Failures of electricity or communications may also lead to lengthy periods of unavailability. As an example there is a story from Norway where wintertime thunderstorms severely damaged a radar at a very remote location.
Annual operative costs of a radar are typically on the order of 5%–10% of the radar purchase price. During the lifetime of a system (typically 10–20 years) the operator can hence pay as much for the running costs as for the hardware purchase. It is extremely important to take infrastructure, maintenance, and monitoring into account when purchasing a new radar.
Abstract
Weather radars provide us with colorful images of storms, their development, and their movement, but from time to time the radars fail and we are left without data. To minimize these disruptions, owners of weather radars carry out preventive maintenance.
The European radar project Operational Programme for the Exchange of Weather Radar Information (OPERA) conducted a survey among technicians from 21 countries on their experiences of maintenance. Regular maintenance frequency varies widely from as frequent as weekly to as infrequent as 6 months. Results show that the primary causes of missing data are not the failure of radar components and software or lack of maintenance but rather issues with the electricity supplies or telecommunications. Where issues are with the radars themselves, they are most commonly with the transmitter or the antenna controllers. Faults can be repaired quickly, but, if certain parts are required or the site is very remote, a radar can be out of service for weeks or even months. Failures of electricity or communications may also lead to lengthy periods of unavailability. As an example there is a story from Norway where wintertime thunderstorms severely damaged a radar at a very remote location.
Annual operative costs of a radar are typically on the order of 5%–10% of the radar purchase price. During the lifetime of a system (typically 10–20 years) the operator can hence pay as much for the running costs as for the hardware purchase. It is extremely important to take infrastructure, maintenance, and monitoring into account when purchasing a new radar.
Abstract
Weather radar networks have great potential for continuous and long-term monitoring of aerial biodiversity of birds, bats, and insects. Biological data from weather radars can support ecological research, inform conservation policy development and implementation, and increase the public’s interest in natural phenomena such as migration. Weather radars are already used to study animal migration, quantify changes in populations, and reduce aerial conflicts between birds and aircraft. Yet efforts to establish a framework for the broad utilization of operational weather radar for biodiversity monitoring are at risk without suitable data policies and infrastructure in place. In Europe, communities of meteorologists and ecologists have made joint efforts toward sharing and standardizing continent-wide weather radar data. These efforts are now at risk as new meteorological data exchange policies render data useless for biodiversity monitoring. In several other parts of the world, weather radar data are not even available for ecological research. We urge policy makers, funding agencies, and meteorological organizations across the world to recognize the full potential of weather radar data. We propose several actions that would ensure the continued capability of weather radar networks worldwide to act as powerful tools for biodiversity monitoring and research.
Abstract
Weather radar networks have great potential for continuous and long-term monitoring of aerial biodiversity of birds, bats, and insects. Biological data from weather radars can support ecological research, inform conservation policy development and implementation, and increase the public’s interest in natural phenomena such as migration. Weather radars are already used to study animal migration, quantify changes in populations, and reduce aerial conflicts between birds and aircraft. Yet efforts to establish a framework for the broad utilization of operational weather radar for biodiversity monitoring are at risk without suitable data policies and infrastructure in place. In Europe, communities of meteorologists and ecologists have made joint efforts toward sharing and standardizing continent-wide weather radar data. These efforts are now at risk as new meteorological data exchange policies render data useless for biodiversity monitoring. In several other parts of the world, weather radar data are not even available for ecological research. We urge policy makers, funding agencies, and meteorological organizations across the world to recognize the full potential of weather radar data. We propose several actions that would ensure the continued capability of weather radar networks worldwide to act as powerful tools for biodiversity monitoring and research.
