The Evolution of Doppler Radar Radar Radar, short for RA dio D etection A nd R anging technology, was developed just prior to World War II as a method to detect and locate hostile aircraft at long distances. At first, storms were a nuisance that obscured valuable data. However, as users became familiar with the technology, storm systems became the subject of radar investigations. Today, weather radar can locate and follow precipitation within a range of 200 to 400 kilometres.
Radars provide a way of measuring the intensity of rain and snowfall.
Most importantly, radar helps weather forecasters predict and identify, in advance, severe storms that could seriously affect the lives and property of Canadians. Weather radar emits wave energy in short bursts or pulses, which are focused in a narrow conical beam that scans the atmosphere from a slowly rotating antenna. This information is used to map the location and intensity of the precipitation over the area surrounding the radar. The Doppler effect was observed for the first time in the mid-nineteenth century. He was right.