Indigenously developed S-band Doppler Weather Radar commissioned in Kochi  

A state-of-the-art, indigenously developed S-band doppler weather radar (DWR) of India Meteorological Department (IMD) was commissioned at Palluruthy in West Kochi, Kerala.
It has been manufactured by Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) based on the indigenous technology provided by ISRO. It joins the latest in a chain of 27 such advanced radars already installed in various parts of the country.
The S-band DWR is capable of predicting weather events such as storms and cyclones, other severe weather conditions occurring in 500-km radius from Kochi with increased accuracy.

Doppler weather radar

Doppler weather radar is an observational tool for monitoring and predicting severe weather events such as hailstorms, thunder storms, cyclones and tornados. It uses the Doppler effect by bouncing a microwave signal off a desired target to produce velocity data. This data helps in analyzing object’s motion by altered the frequency of the returned signal. It mainly gives information about wind velocity and also about precipitation. 
DWR can provide area specific rain and storm warnings which are beneficial for disaster management and emergency response, aviation and related services. It can be used for wind speed measurements during cyclones and thunderstorms which is not possible in conventional weather radar. Thus, it helps in providing improved warning and better weather forecasts.
Doppler effect: It is an increase (or decrease) in the frequency of sound, light, or other waves as the source and observer move towards (or away from) each other.

Month: Current Affairs - July, 2017