NWS Tampa Bay NEXRAD will down for upgrade beginning January 22, 2018

Heat the Southwest; Fire Weather in the Central U.S.; Kona Low Impacting Hawaii

A rare March heat wave is ongoing with much above-normal temperatures over the Southwest U.S. through this weekend. Periods of critical fire weather will persist from the central Rockies to the central and southern Plains through the weekend as gusty winds and low relative humidity continue. A Kona low will continue to bring several rounds of moderate to heavy rainfall to Hawaii through Sunday. Read More >

Public Information Statement National Weather Service Tampa Bay Ruskin FL 1253 PM EST Fri Jan 19 2018 ...Public Information Statement for KTBW Radar... Contacts: Brian LaMarre, Meteorologist In Charge brian.lamarre@noaa.gov, 813-645-2323 X222 Daniel Noah, Warning Coordination Meteorologist daniel.noah@noaa.gov, 813-645-2323 X223 Beginning Monday, January 22, the KTBW WSR-88D radar operated by the NOAA National Weather Service in Ruskin, Florida will be down for approximately five days for the refurbishment of the transmitter. Although the form, fit, and function of the transmitter will remain the same, old breakers and cables original to the radar will be replaced with modern fuses and new cables. This will help keep the 20-year-old radar operating smoothly for another 20 years. This transmitter update is the second major project of the NEXRAD Service Life Extension Program, a series of upgrades and replacements that will keep our nation`s radars viable into the 2030`s. NOAA National Weather Service, the United States Air Force, and the Federal Aviation Administration are investing $150 million in the seven year program. The first project was the installation of the new signal processor. The two remaining projects are the refurbishment of the pedestal and equipment shelters. The Service Life Extension Program will complete in 2022. During the downtime, adjacent radars include: NWS Melbourne, Jacksonville, Miami, Tallahassee, as well as the TDWR site located at MacDill AFB. For direct access to any ofthese surrounding radar sites, go to the following web page: https://radar.weather.gov/index.htm The KTBW WSR-88D is part of a network of 159 operational radars. The Radar Operations Center in Norman, Oklahoma, provides lifecycle management and support for all WSR-88Ds. For a radar mosaic loop of the Southeast United States: https://radar.weather.gov/ridge/Conus/southeast_loop.php The National Weather Service in Ruskin, Florida can be found on social media at: https://www.facebook.com/NWSTampaBay and https://twitter.com/NWSTampaBay