Proposed NOAA budget cuts could threaten next-generation weather radar products
The aging NEXRAD radar network is said to be reaching the end of its lifespan, prompting NOAA to develop a plan for the deployment of the Phased Array Radar (PAR) system. During the last week of March and the first two weeks of April, nearly 600 Tornado Warnings were issued by NWS offices, all with the help of Doppler radar data.
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WASHINGTON - Proposed budget cuts to NOAA threaten to slash research funding and stall technological advancements - potentially creating new obstacles in the effort to deploy next-generation radar systems that meteorologists say could significantly improve severe weather forecasting and save lives.
According to documents obtained by congressional members, the Trump administration has proposed reducing NOAA’s budget significantly below its current level of more than $6 billion.
One division potentially at the forefront of the cuts is NOAA’s National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL), which is pioneering the Phased Array Radar (PAR) system - a next-generation technology designed to replace the aging NEXRAD radar network, which has been in place since the 1990s.
While the current radar system is considered the gold standard for detecting severe weather, its scan rate of four to six minutes can miss rapidly evolving events.
By contrast, PAR systems can scan the atmosphere in under a minute, offering near-real-time updates on storm development.
Issuing warnings without a significant suite of data can lead to error rates for alerts topping 75%, according to analysis.
And just during the last week of March and the first two weeks of April, nearly 600 Tornado Warnings were issued by NWS offices, all with the help of Doppler radar data.
Phased Array Radar (PAR) system photo
(NOAA)
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A prototype of the PAR system was deployed in 2021 and has already collected hundreds of hours of atmospheric data, including from more than a dozen tornadic supercells.
"I was amazed at how much quicker and better the storm motion was, because you’re getting those low level scans more frequently," Ryan Bunker, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma, previously stated. "It was definitely a huge plus, not only for the location of warnings but just overall, lead time as well. Using PAR data definitely can give you confidence to issue warnings quicker – and to extend that lead time to protect life and property."
Scientists warn that delaying or halting progress on PAR could jeopardize public safety, as the current NEXRAD system is nearing the end of its intended lifespan.
"The next 10 years are critical for the future of weather radar in the United States," Dr. DaNa Carlis, Director of the NSSL, said in late 2024. "PAR is ready to be part of Radar Next and will serve as a critical infrastructure investment that advances our understanding of severe weather."
FOX Weather reached out to NOAA about how the proposed cuts would affect the development of the PAR system but did not receive a reply.
Ultimately, it is up to Congress to set the agency’s budget, and some lawmakers are vowing to oppose reductions targeting the scientific community.