Met Éireann has announced that its new weather radar system at Shannon Airport is now operational.
It will provide more accurate rainfall information to the weather forecasters and the rainfall radar maps on met.ie and the Met Éireann app.
This new weather radar is the first step in Met Éireann’s strategic development plan to upgrade and expand the national weather radar network over the next 10 years. During this period, the number of radars will triple, from two to six, covering key areas across the country to ensure optimal coverage and forecasting accuracy.
The new weather radar system in Shannon "uses the latest dual-polarisation technology which will enable meteorologists to better distinguish between different types of precipitation such as rain, hail or snow".
This technology also enables better identification and removal of non-meteorological targets such as birds and insects from the data.
As a result, Met Éireann will be able to issue "more precise and timely weather forecasts and warnings for significant weather events, for the benefit of the public, emergency services and the aviation, maritime, farming and other sectors".
Dr Sarah Gallagher, head of the observations division at Met Éireann, said: “Met Éireann is delighted to have successfully completed this important first step in the upgrade of this critical source of weather information. The weather radar at Shannon Airport is vitally important as most of Ireland’s weather comes from the Atlantic, so Shannon is a fantastic location for the first detection and analysis of these rainfall events. This radar will increase the accuracy of our forecasts and of the rainfall radar service for the benefit of all. Our team is already analysing the radar’s new data with a view to further enhancing our service with new features next year.
“This state-of-art upgrade was complex and involved significant background work examining the hardware, technologies to be used, civil works at an airport infrastructure and adapting our systems to accommodate this new information and data.
"This is the first step of a longer-term scientific project to expand the national weather radar network beyond Shannon and Dublin and we’re excited to continue innovating and investing in science as part of our commitment to public safety and wellbeing. We’re already researching sites for four additional radars to optimise rainfall detection and coverage capabilities across the country.”
