IITM installs Doppler radar in Mahabaleshwar, boost to nowcasting in Pune

Installed at an altitude of around 1,400 metres above sea level in the Western Ghats, the radar will function as a “weather eye in the sky”, tracking rainfall, cloud movement and storms in real time

The Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) on Thursday commissioned a state-of-the-art X-band dual-polarisation Doppler weather radar at its High Altitude Cloud Physics Laboratory (HACPL) in Mahabaleshwar under the Centre’s Mission Mausam initiative, officials said.

Scientists said the radar will support early warnings for floods and landslides, and aid aviation safety, disaster management, agriculture advisories and water resource planning. (HT)

The system was inaugurated by M. Ravichandran, secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, in the presence of A. Suryachandra Rao, director, IITM, and Somya S. Sarkar, director of the Space Applications Centre, along with senior scientists.

Installed at an altitude of around 1,400 metres above sea level in the Western Ghats, the radar will function as a “weather eye in the sky”, tracking rainfall, cloud movement and storms in real time. The location is significant given Mahabaleshwar’s rapidly changing weather conditions, including sudden rain, dense fog and strong winds.

Kaustav Chakravarty, scientist at IITM, said the system will improve nowcasting, short-term forecasts of up to three hours, across Satara, Pune and parts of the Konkan. “It is also expected to aid in studying orographic rainfall, thunderstorms and cloud evolution over complex terrain,” he said.

On the occasion, IITM also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) through its Space Applications Centre (SAC) to strengthen collaboration in satellite meteorology.

The partnership will focus on developing advanced satellite-based weather products by integrating satellite and ground observations, improving cloud property estimation, monitoring air pollution and refining atmospheric profiling. It will also include joint research on extreme weather, deep convection, lightning and climate impacts, along with data sharing and training programmes.

Officials said the collaboration is expected to enhance forecasting accuracy and strengthen India’s preparedness for extreme weather events.