KLOT WSR-88D Radar Upgrade This Week

The National Weather Service in Romeoville will be performing a major upgrade to our WSR-88D Doppler Radar as part of a Service Life Extension Program. The radar will be down for approximately three days beginning Monday, May 22nd. The work on the WSR-88D may be delayed if hazardous weather is forecast, but once work begins the radar will be down until the work is finished.

During the outage, radar coverage is available from adjacent radar sites including:

Davenport, IA

Lincoln, IL

Milwaukee, WI

Northern Indiana

Indianapolis, IN

Grand Rapids, MI

National Mosaic

Portions of the area are also covered by FAA Terminal Doppler Radars TMDW and TORD.

A crew will install a new signal processor, which replaces obsolete technology, improves processing speed and data quality, provides added functionality, and supports IT security.

This is the first of four major upgrades planned in the next five years to replace and refurbish major components of the 20 year old WSR-88Ds and to keep the radars operational into the 2030s. The $150M investment is being made by the three organizations that use these radars; the NOAA National Weather Service, United States Air Force, and Federal Aviation Administration. The other service life extension projects include refurbishing the transmitter, pedestal, and equipment shelters.