While the Spring has brought with it our share of severe weather, a tornado outbreak has roared across the Central Plains tonight. I thought this might be a good time to introduce you to our new high resolution radar software that allows us to see more clearly into the heart of severe storms.

We have been using this software tonight, tracking and analyzing these powerful storms over Oklahoma and Kansas. The result of these storms is tragic with reported deaths but the radar imagery lends us useful information for the future. I have posted the images below with descriptions (click on snapshots to read more) and we will be using this technology more in the future as the Spring Severe Weather Season continues.

 Advancements in Doppler Radar software really allows us to rapidly analyze severe thunderstorms and track developing rotation. It updates a quickly as the information is received and helps us alert viewers sooner. With higher resolution, we can pinpoint exactly where rotation is strongest and where a possible tornado may develop. Our first use of this product for us came when we were covering overnight tornadic storms on May 1st. After the National Weather Service surveyed storm damage the following week, we noticed that they found damage in many of the communities that we focused on, and identified the strongest rotation on radar.

We hope to continue to learn from events like what happened in Oklahoma and Kansas and apply that knowledge the next time storms strike our region.