Tracking Two Storms Impacting the Northern U.S. Through Thanksgiving and into This Weekend

Heavy lake effect snow and gusty winds, including some local blizzard conditions, will continue into Thanksgiving Day across the Great Lakes then lingering through Friday night for Lakes Erie and Ontario. Confidence is increasing for another winter storm to develop over the northern and central Rockies Friday and track across the central Plains through the Midwest and Great Lakes this weekend. Read More >

The KMKX WSR-88D operated by NOAA’s National Weather Service in Milwaukee/Sullivan, Wisconsin will be down for approximately two weeks for an important upgrade from March 28th through April 8th. Technicians will refurbish and replace the pedestal, one of the most critical components of the radar, which is necessary for antenna rotation and positioning to capture data in all directions. The components are extremely heavy and will require the radome to be removed by crane and replaced when the work is completed.

Here's an example of what will be happening to our radar over the next 2 weeks: youtu.be/HLLIH5kHD6Q

The radar and pedestal were designed to last 25 years, and this radar has exceeded its life-span. This activity is necessary to keep the radar functioning for another 20 years or more.

The pedestal refurbishment is the third major project of the NEXRAD Service Life Extension Program, a series of upgrades that will keep our nation’s radars viable into the 2030s. To learn more about SLEP, please visit: Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) (noaa.gov)

During the downtime, adjacent radars will be available, including: Milwaukee Terminal Doppler (TMKE), Green Bay (KGRB), La Crosse (KARX), Davenport/Quad Cities (KDVN), and Chicago/Romeoville (KLOT). For direct access to any of these surrounding radar sites, visit the following web page: https://radar.weather.gov/

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Tracking Two Storms Impacting the Northern U.S. Through Thanksgiving and into This Weekend

KMKX Radar Outage through April 8th