New System Helps Airliners Avoid Turbulence

NCAR's NEXRAD turbulence detection algorithm (NTDA) generates real-time maps of in-cloud turbulence to alert airline meteorologists and dispatchers to potentially dangerous areas of rough air. The map above, generated by the system during early testing in 2005, shows areas of moderate and severe turbulence in the Midwest, as well as automated reports of turbulence detected by aircraft in flight (colored dots). In the cockpit, pilots receive a printout showing areas of turbulence along their flight path. Credit: Research Applications Laboratory, NCAR