What it takes to go from rain gauge to threat detector

The core foundations of the comprehensive weather picture - storm-top information, Predictive OverFlight™ Protection, enhanced turbulence analysis, and detection and assessment of all threatening weather - are derived from a capability known as Directed Sequential Hazard Assessment. This technology allows MultiScan to detect weather hazards and then, using a combination of horizontal and vertical scans, perform a threat analysis tailored to the phase of flight.

Directed Sequential Hazard Assessment allows MultiScan to change radar parameters, such as frequency, gain and pulse width, to thoroughly evaluate the specific weather and determine its threat potential. This weather assessment transforms MultiScan from a "rain gauge," like all other current generation radars, to a threat detector. The critical result is the capability to provide flight crews information on storm height, growth rate, weather hazards including lightning and hail, and turbulence potential - all referenced to the aircraft flight path.

In this video you can see an animated demonstration of Directed Sequential Hazard Assessment in action.