I-Corps: Commercialization of a City Scale Weather Radar

公众对详细天气信息的需求正在上升，但目前的天气预报准确性并不令人满意，特别是在小规模地区的预测方面（例如，邻域或块级）。目前的国家雷达系统每5分钟提供一次更新的天气信息，数据质量随着与雷达距离的增加而大大降低。因此，在恶劣天气的情况下，一些事件可能会被忽视，或者有关这些事件的信息可能无法及时提供。马萨诸塞大学阿默斯特分校开发的下一代短程天气雷达承诺提供更高的时间和空间分辨率，以及可靠、低成本的操作。该团队开发的新型紧凑型天气雷达承诺提供更高的数据分辨率，可以部署在屋顶、通信塔和其他基础设施元件上，而无需昂贵的结构修改。该系统的低重量允许2人安装，而不使用起重机或直升机，进一步降低了总成本。该雷达辐射的峰值功率约为100瓦，而不是目前使用的天气雷达的标准250- 500千瓦。因此，所提出的传感系统不会造成任何辐射危害。由于其短程作业性质，可以在近地面观测天气，这直接影响到当地社区。通过这项技术，最新的雷达信息将被传输给对天气做出关键决策的个人和组织。

The public's appetite for detailed weather information is on the rise, but current weather forecasting accuracy is not satisfactory, especially when it comes to predictions for small-scale areas (e.g., neighborhood-, or block-level). Current national radar systems provide weather information updated once every 5 minutes and the quality of the data degrades considerably with increased distance from the radar. Therefore, in case of severe weather, some events might remain unnoticed or the information about them might not be delivered on time. A next generation, short-range weather radar developed at UMass Amherst promises higher temporal and spatial resolution as well as a reliable, low-cost operation.The new class of compact weather radar developed by this team promises much higher data resolution and can be deployed on rooftops, communications towers, and other infrastructure elements, without expensive structure modifications. The low-weight of the system allows for a 2 person installation without the usage of a crane or helicopter further reducing the overall cost. The radar radiates a peak power on the order of 100W, rather than in the range of 250-500kW - a standard for current operational weather radars. Therefore the proposed sensing system does not pose any radiation hazard. Due to its short-range nature of operation, observation of the weather close to the ground, which directly affects local communities, is possible. With the proposed technology, up-to-the-second radar information will be transmitted to individuals and organizations that make critical decisions about the weather.