Down goes the dome: Important weather radar in Davis undergoing repairs

The National Weather Service’s radar near Davis is undergoing major repairs after its randome and pedestal were removed last week as part of the NEXRAD Service Life Extension Program.

The Sacramento forecast office of the National Weather Service operates the radar, known as KDAX, along with KBBX at Beale Air Force Base. Both are known technically as WSR-88D — shorthand for Weather Surveillance Radar, 1988, Doppler — and are part of the weather service’s network of 159 Next-Generation Radars. The Davis radar, which was installed in February 1994, was designed to last 25 years.

The refurbishment program, funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the United States Air Force and the Federal Aviation Administration, is using $150 million over eight years to keep the radars working for another 20 years.

The randome, which protects the pedestal from the elements, is heavy and large. A crane removed the structure from the property Wednesday along County Road 35, not far from the Yolo Bypass, and will replace it following repairs.

“Technicians will refurbish and replace the pedestal, one of the most critical components of the radar, which is necessary for antenna rotation and positioning to capture data in all directions,” the weather service said in a statement.

The radar is not functional during the repairs, but radars at Beale and in Hanford, Reno and Monterey continue to operate and are augmenting Sacramento’s forecasts.