AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 95

WXWATCH

Datalink lowdown
Looking at thunderstorms from two different angles
BY THOMAS A. HORNE

D

atalink weather information— especially datalinked Nexrad radar imagery—has created a revolution in the way pilots approach thunderstorm avoidance. In the recent past, general aviation pilots could often find themselves on
instruments, flying blind in situations where embedded thunderstorms lurked dangerously near. Sure, those with the luxury of airborne weather radar have the advantage of scanning the skies for precipitation returns that indicate convection. But it takes skill and experience to learn to manage airborne weather radar tilt angles, and even more skill to correctly interpret radar imagery on the fly. Today’s datalinked Nexrad imagery is much more intuitive. It also covers a greater volume of sky, and its resolution benefits from the ground-based Nexrad radar’s small, powerful beam— a beam that can see clear through a thunderstorm, and beyond. Airborne weather radars suffer from attenuation of their signals, which means that heavy precipitation can absorb the comparatively weaker radar’s transmitted energy and send back an image that gives false returns. What look like navigable passageways through a line of radar returns may actually be the worst parts of the storm system. “Clear” areas behind strong storm cells may really be convective danger zones hidden in these radar shadows. How much better to have datalinked radar! We can see where airborne radar can’t, locate dangerous radar signatures with ease, and instantly grasp the true extent of any precipitation or thunderstorms. The big caveat? Don’t use datalinked Nexrad imagery for tactical weather avoidance—to weave around
Base reflectivity (above left) and composite reflectivity (above) Nexrad weather images from the Paducah, Kentucky, radar site are taken for the same date and time. Base reflectivity shows that rainfall in the lower levels of the atmosphere isn’t as widespread as the total amount of precipitation held in the entire storm complex. At the time, a severe thunderstorm watch and tornado warning was in effect.

cells or navigate your way through a storm complex, for example. Instead, use it as a strategic tool to cut strong radar returns a wide berth. We all follow this rule, right? Yeah, right. There are some very good reasons why tactical use around smaller-scale storm features is a no-no. This raises a complex and sometimes controversial subject, but
AOPA PILOT • 95 • AUGUST 2011



AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011

AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011
Contents
President’s Position
Hangar Talk
AOPA Media
AOPA Action
AOPA Summit 2011
Letters
Waypoints
Proficient Pilot
License to Learn
Pilot Counsel
Fly Well
Pilot Briefing
Rally GA: Open for Business
Epic Flight: 88 Magical Aerial Miles
When There Was One
Methodical Risk Taker
Flying Skeletons and Electric Hummingbirds
Short Work
Avionics: Big World on a Small Screen
Wx Watch: Datalink Lowdown
Pilot Products: Cool, New Stuff
Never Again
Fly-Outs
Fly by wire
Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Cover2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - President’s Position
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 5
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Hangar Talk
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 7
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 8
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 9
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - AOPA Media
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 11
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - AOPA Action
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 13
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 14
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 15
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 16
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 17
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 18
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 19
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - AOPA Summit 2011
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 21
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Letters
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 23
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 24
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 25
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Waypoints
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 27
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Proficient Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 29
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - License to Learn
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 31
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Pilot Counsel
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 33
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Fly Well
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 35
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Pilot Briefing
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 37
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 38
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 39
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 40
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 41
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 42
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 43
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 44
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 45
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 46
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Rally GA: Open for Business
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 48
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 48a
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 48b
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 49
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 50
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 51
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Epic Flight: 88 Magical Aerial Miles
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 53
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 54
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 55
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 56
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 57
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - When There Was One
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 59
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 60
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 61
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 62
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 63
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 64
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 65
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Methodical Risk Taker
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 67
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 68
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 69
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 70
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 71
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 72
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 73
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Flying Skeletons and Electric Hummingbirds
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 75
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 76
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 77
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 78
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 79
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 80
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Short Work
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 82
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 83
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 84
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 85
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 86
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Avionics: Big World on a Small Screen
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 88
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - I1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - I2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 89
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 90
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 91
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 92
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 93
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 94
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Wx Watch: Datalink Lowdown
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 96
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 97
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 98
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Pilot Products: Cool, New Stuff
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 100
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 101
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Never Again
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 103
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 104
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 105
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Fly-Outs
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Fly by wire
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 108
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 109
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 110
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - 111
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Cover3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2011 - Cover4
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