Meteorological expertise on show in Switzerland

Meteorological specialists Biral is attending the Met Tech expo in Geneva in June to showcase its advanced meteorological products for the meteorological market.

Biral’s experts will be at the show demonstrating a wide variety of meteorological equipment. These include the BTD-200 Lightning Warning System, BTD-300 Thunderstorm Detector, VPF-730 and SWS-200 Visibility & Present Weather Sensors.

Launched last year at Met Tech, the BTD-200 lightning warning system is a complete detection and warning system which has been developed from the Biral range of professional aviation grade lightning detection systems. It reliably detects the local presence of all forms of lightning out to a range of 35km (22 miles) from the sensor. Designed to be installed and set up by non-technical staff, it comes with a power supply and the essential PC application ‘Lightning Works’, for monitoring and warning personnel of approaching thunderstorms.

The company’s BTD-300 thunderstorm detection system uses a new technology detection system which has significant benefits over both radio wave based as well as field-mill devices. Its close range detection efficiency is roughly 200% better than lightning location network systems, providing excellent warning capabilities. The system has the ability to detect all forms of lightning within an 83km radius, including warning of potential overhead lightning. The equipment is effectively immune to man-made false alarms making it highly reliable in safety critical situations such as at airports as part of the overall AWOS system.

As Biral’s most corrosion resistant design, the VPF range provides accurate visibility and present weather measurement and has been specified for many installations due to its efficiency, reliability and performance. The sensor is a compact and robust package which makes it particularly suitable for aviation and general synoptic networks. Its exceptionally long service life (15+ years) makes it ideal in coastal or off-shore locations where the local conditions can be severe.

The SWS-200 is designed for use in applications where accurate and reliable visibility measurements are required with the addition of WMO 4680 present weather codes. The sensor measures Meteorological Optical Range (MOR) as well as reporting the presence of liquid and frozen precipitation. The unique backscatter receiver gives the SWS-200 unparalleled abilities in distinguishing frozen from liquid precipitation.