This early radar device was used during World War II on the beach in Normandy. Photograph taken on June 22, 1944.
Click on image for full size
Image courtesy of the public domain
The History of Radar
People understood the concept of radar long before scientists first built a radar system. In the late 1930's all of the countries involved in World War II rushed to create better radar systems to use in the war.
Great Britain was one of the leading developers of radar in the years leading up to World War II. The research they conducted led to an early warning radar system called "Chain Home". They built radar stations around the British Isles to provide warning of an aerial invasion. This was one of the advantages which helped the outnumbered Royal Air Force defeat the German Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain.
While radar development was encouraged by wartime efforts, people were also interested in using radar as an anti-collision system. After the Titanic ran into an iceberg and sank during bad weather in 1912, people were interested in ways to avoid this happening again.
Out of these all of these efforts, weather radar was developed.
Shop Windows to the Universe Science Store!
Cool It! is the new card game from the Union of Concerned Scientists that teaches kids about the choices we have when it comes to climate change—and how policy and technology decisions made today will matter. Cool It! is available in our
online store.
You might also be interested in:
The Fall 2009 issue of The Earth Scientist includes a collection of Earth and Space Science articles for you, covering the current efforts to save Louisiana’s Lake Pontchartrain, student research into building design as it relates to earthquake damage, an exciting Earth Science project and resource from the United Kingdom
...more
The Doppler effect was named after Christian Doppler, who first came up with the idea in 1842. He learned that sound waves would have a higher frequency if the source was moving toward the observer and
...more
Sound travels in waves. You hear sound because waves hit your ear. Sound waves are similar to ocean waves. They both have a certain frequency. The frequency is measured in hertz, which is one cycle per
...more
Storm chasers are different than storm spotters. Chasers travel around Tornado Alley looking for severe storms and tornadoes. This area in the Great Plains is the best for chasing because of the frequency
...more
A tornado is the most intense force in nature. That doesn't mean it's the most powerful. In fact, a thunderstorm can be 40,000 times more powerful than a tornado. Then why aren't thunderstorms as dangerous
...more
It's hard to forecast tornadoes. They don't last very long and are also very complicated. Scientists don't really know how they form, but they do where they tend to form. Using what they know about the
...more
Has someone ever told you to open your windows during a tornado? Or has someone ever told you that you don't have to worry about tornadoes because the place where you live is protected? These are two of
...moreTornadoes are very dangerous so it's important to know when they may form so you can take shelter. Forecastors at the National Weather Service are always looking for possible storms. Even though nobody
...more
