THUNDER BAY – A new, upgraded Environment Canada radar station is expected to bring improvements for Thunder Bay-area weather forecasts.
The new weather radar, located further south in the Shuniah area than the previous station, was completed and brought online earlier this month.
The replacement was part of a plan announced by the federal government in 2017 to renew its network of 33 weather radar stations, which dated to 2003.
The network’s primary purpose is early detection of developing thunderstorms and severe weather, as well as tracking of precipitation.
Environment Canada meteorologist Gerald Cheng said the new radar boasts a number of technical improvements that will translate to more accurate and timely weather warnings for area residents.
Its dual-polarization technology, for example, sends radar waves both vertically and horizontally, providing more detailed information on the size and shape of precipitation.
“What that allows us to do is detect different shapes, so we can tell what’s falling… if it’s snow, if it’s rain, or if it’s hail,” said Cheng.
And with double the Doppler range of the previous radar, at 240 kilometres, the new station will complete a sweep in six minutes, down from ten, providing data more regularly.
That will support earlier detection of storms and other weather patterns, Cheng said.
As well as being used by Environment Canada forecasters, the radar data is available to the public online, and to third parties – it’s used by numerous private weather apps, for example.
The previous Superior West radar was located at Lasseter Lake, north of the city off Highway 527.
The new site is farther south, off Highway 527 in Shuniah.
The radar consists of a 25-metre lattice steel tower topped with a dome that’s 12-metre diameter, for a total height of nearly 40 metres – roughly equivalent to a 12-storey building.
Northwestern Ontario's only other weather radar, near Dryden, was upgraded in 2020.
