CSWR operates the Doppler On Wheels (DOW) network, Mobile Mesonets, Mobile Upper Air Sounding systems, Disdrometers, and ruggedized deployable
instrumentation Pods in service to the scientific community.
To request CSWR instrumentation, click Facility Requests to the left.
From 20 January to 16 February 2020, DOW7 was on hand for the BLOWN-UNDER project at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks. The aim of the project was to study the blowing snow and blizzard conditions common to N.D. in the harsh winter months, and to give students hands-on experience with a mobile weather radar. Ironically, the weather was calm and clear until the end of the project, when the team led by UND professor and project lead Aaron Kennedy, got just the winter weather conditions they were waiting for.
Learn more about the project by reading articles by KVRR TV and UND Today.
Twenty years ago on May 3, an extraordinarilly powerful F5 tornado devasted southern Oklahoma City and surrounding areas. It killed 36 people and caused nearly $1 billion in damages, prompting President Bill Clinton to sign a major disaster declaration for the affected areas. DOW2 and DOW3 were both on hand to observe the event for project ROTATE, with DOW3 recording the highest wind speed ever observed on Earth: 301 (+/- 20) mph at the point when the tornado was at its strongest, before striking Moore.
Reference Publications: Wurman 2002, Lee and Wurman 2005, Wurman et al 2007, Kosiba and Wurman 2013
The Center for Severe Weather Research (CSWR) operates the Doppler on Wheels (DOW) mobile radar network, consisting of two dual-polarization, dual-frequency mobile radars and one multi-beam, rapid scan radar, as a National Science Foundation (NSF) facility. Researchers and faculty can request the DOWs for their projects.
CSWR is engaged in research investigating tornadogenesis, tornado structure, hurricane boundary layers and surface wind damage, as well as radar technology. CSWR has also played a major role in VORTEX2, COPS, IHOP, STEP, IPEX, PAMREX and other projects. Here is a list of related CSWR publications.
CSWR is committed to the advancement of radar meteorology education. Additionally, CSWR maintains close collaborations with both Pennsylvania State University and the University of Colorado. Here is a list of educational projects in which CSWR has been involved.
