PulseRadSM
A Radar Alternative Based on Total Lightning Detection
While radar has proven an invaluable tool in weather forecasting, alerting and research, many areas of the world lack the financial resources and technical expertise to deploy, operate and maintain a radar solution. PulseRadSM—the first practical radar alternative capable of coverage on a national and continental scale—visually resembles radar, is designed to provide similar benefits as radar at a lower cost, and updates faster and can be implemented more quickly than radar.
How Does PulseRad Work?
PulseRad is made possible by the Earth Networks Total Lightning Network, the world's largest lightning network and the only one that comprehensively measures both cloud-to-ground and in-cloud lightning on a global scale. The combination of in-cloud and cloud-to-ground lightning is critical to establishing an accurate correlation between lightning activity and radar reflectivity.
Using complex algorithms that correlate lightning flash rates to radar reflectivity, PulseRad provides forecasters with an interactive map of convective weather, and in the future non-convective weather, in places where traditional radar coverage is often incomplete or nonexistent. Distinct algorithms for different climate zones (mountainous, tropical, subtropical) within a forecast area are seamlessly integrated into the PulseRad interactive map to ensure accuracy and reliability.
Key Benefits:
Identify Dangerous Storms
PulseRad highlights the potential for dangerous storms that may contain damaging winds, large hail and tornadoes, including in places where radar coverage is limited or not available. Lightning cell tracking is used to identify storm cells and correlate the Total Lightning flash rate within a cell with radar reflectivity. The resulting map looks similar to radar and uses the same units as radar (dBz) for easy interpretation.
Advanced Alerts & Nowcasting
PulseRad enables advanced alerts of building storms through continuous monitoring updated every minute. In contrast, traditional radar typically updates every four to six minutes. PulseRad can be used in conjunction with Earth Networks Dangerous Thunderstorm Alerts, which are issued when there is a high frequency of lightning detected by the Earth Networks Total Lightning Network, to ensure accurate alerting with increased lead times.
Ocean and Mountain Coverage
PulseRad shows storms over oceans while traditional radar is limited in coverage to generally less than 300 miles from the land-based radar site. PulseRad also sees storms embedded within mountainous regions, providing critical information that traditional radar may not capture due to the challenging topography.
Anticipate Flooding, Assess Drought
PulseRad provides real-time monitoring for flooding potential and drought assessment. In conjunction with data from the Earth Networks Weather Network, PulseRad provides a more complete picture of rainfall rates and accumulated precipitation.
Lower Cost
PulseRad is a lower-cost but reliable and effective alternative to radar that enables advanced alerting of dangerous storms and potential for flooding where installing radar or a network of radars is either too expensive or logistically difficult. Both up-front and operational costs are more affordable than traditional radar, which is often expensive to install and operate.