Weather radar design (photo credit: Environment and Climate Change Canada)

By Kevin Rothwell

240 km Doppler

New weather radar station promises better forecasting

Apr 13, 2021 | 6:00 AM

Environment and Climate Change Canada is proposing to replace the existing 30 metre weather radar tower at the top of Silver Star Mountain with a new and more powerful 42 metre radar station.

“The new radar will extend the detection range and will be better to forecast severe weather events,” Regional District of North Okanagan (RDNO) planner Mark Tanner reported to the Electoral Area Advisory Committee (EAAC).

The regional district must approve the installation.

The new radar facility will have an extended severe-weather detection range by increasing the Doppler range to 240 km per radar from the current 120 km.

Environment and Climate Change Canada stated the purpose of the new weather radar is to replace the existing ageing network with new modern radars aimed at better informing Canadians of changing weather, water and climate conditions.

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Construction of the proposed new radar tower would begin in 2021 with excavation and installation of the foundation and be completed in 2022 with erection of the tower, installation of the radar and surrounding compound.

Construction will take place near the top of the Comet chair lift, just south of the existing tower, which will remain in operation until the expected completion in autumn 2022.