codex: Create Weather Radar inventory article: 25,995 CR, properties, controls and October 2026 scanning display

2026-10-14T22:36:15Z

Create Weather Radar inventory article: 25,995 CR, properties, controls and October 2026 scanning display

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{{Inventory|weight=8.1|price=25,995|mtbf=Not specified|image=Weather-radar-E11-2026-10-14}}

'''Weather Radar''' is an [[:Category:Avionics|avionics]] [[:Category:Inventory|inventory]] item that scans precipitation ahead of an equipped vehicle and displays colored returns on the cockpit moving map. Strong nearby weather can weaken or hide returns farther away.

This article describes the scanning display implemented in the '''14 October 2026 client update'''. It requires a compatible client and server weather feed; older clients may behave differently.

== Purchase and installation ==
Available from the '''Accessories''' menu at [[Rusty's Rentals]] for '''25,995 [[CR]]'''. Installation requires a free avionics bay, and a vehicle cannot have a second Weather Radar installed. Aircraft and aerospace vehicles are supported; the '''T-27 Mammoth''' is the permitted ground-vehicle exception.

The equipment weighs approximately '''8.1 kg''' (17.8574 lb). The cargo manifest rounds the installed weight to 8 kg. No maintained MTBF is specified for this item.

== Operation ==
# Supply cockpit electrical power and open the cargo/manifest display.
# Use '''Shift+Up''' or '''Shift+Down''' to select '''Weather Radar''' under the avionics entries.
# Press '''Shift+U (Use)''' to toggle its power. The manifest shows '''ON''' or '''OFF'''.
# View the moving map and allow the forward sector to scan. Change the map range to change the radar range.

The radar continues scanning while powered even when the moving-map page is closed. Switching it off restores the ordinary map background.

== Scan and range ==
* A narrow '''cyan sweep''' scans a '''120-degree forward sector''': 60 degrees left and right of the vehicle's heading.
* Each one-way sweep takes '''four seconds''', reversing at either end; a complete out-and-back cycle takes eight seconds.
* Returns update when the sweep crosses their bearing. Between visits they retain their geographical position as the vehicle moves or turns.
* Radar range is '''twice the selected map inner-ring range''', up to a maximum of '''64 km'''. For example, a 20 km inner ring gives a 40 km scan; 32 km or more reaches the 64 km cap.
* Received weather and terrain coverage can limit useful range before that maximum. Changing range starts a fresh scan.

== Reading the display ==
Weather replaces the ordinary land/water shading or [[Remote Assay]] fill. Navigation fixes, labels, compass, range rings, airspace and traffic remain visible.

The colors represent '''relative Rise precipitation-return levels after attenuation'''. They are not calibrated rainfall rates or dBZ measurements.

{| class="wikitable"
! Color !! Return level !! Meaning
|-
| Black / no colored return || Below 2.5 || No detectable return at this level.
|-
| Green || 2.5 to below 7 || Lower return strength.
|-
| Yellow || 7 to below 11 || Increasing return strength.
|-
| Red || 11 to below 15 || Strong return.
|-
| Purple || 15 and above || Highest return band.
|-
| Dark gray || Shadow || The path is blocked by terrain or sufficiently attenuated by weather.
|-
| Dark blue-gray || Missing coverage || Weather or terrain data is unavailable along the path.
|}

'''A dark area is not proof of clear weather.''' A strong nearby cell can cast a radar shadow and conceal another cell behind it. Missing coverage also leaves an incomplete picture.

{| class="wikitable"
! Indication !! Meaning
|-
| '''WX''' || A scan is available without a current limited-data or initial-acquisition indication.
|-
| '''WX SCAN''' || The first sector scan is still being acquired.
|-
| '''WX DATA LIMITED''' || Part of the scanned area lacks usable weather or terrain coverage.
|-
| '''WX NO DATA''' || No usable scan is available.
|-
| '''WX ATTEN''' || One or more scanned paths are shadowed by attenuation or terrain. This can accompany another WX indication.
|}

[[File:Weather-radar-E11-2026-10-14.png|thumb|center|420px|Native E-11 cockpit display replay using controlled weather samples. The near cell shadows distant returns on the left, while the distant band remains visible on the unobstructed side. WX ATTEN identifies the shadowed picture.]]

[[GPWS]] terrain/obstacle alert displays and self-test take priority over weather. [[TCAS]] advisory/test decluttering also temporarily suppresses the weather layer. Scanning continues behind these displays and the weather layer returns when they clear. Weather Radar adds no aural alerts.

== Operating limits ==
The scan can operate on the ground, in VTOL/hover and during atmospheric flight. Low indicated airspeed and Autoflyte engagement do not disable it.

The current local weather feed suspends above '''10 km MSL''' and begins reacquiring below '''9.5 km MSL'''. High-altitude ascent, suborbital coast and orbit therefore normally show '''WX NO DATA'''. Re-entry requires fresh weather and terrain data before scanning resumes.

Loss of power, equipment removal or loss of the weather feed clears the previous scan. A vehicle change, relocation or major discontinuity also starts fresh acquisition. Weather data that has not changed revision for six minutes expires. In the in-world simulator, Weather Radar is suppressed and the baseline moving map is retained.

Rise uses a simplified, horizontally stabilized beam and precipitation column. There are no pilot tilt/gain controls, Doppler wind measurements, turbulence detection or predictive windshear alerts from this radar. The colors and attenuation are simulation approximations for [[Vieneo]], not a calibrated model of a particular real-world radar or Earth's atmosphere.

== See also ==
* [[Weather]]
* [[Doppler Radar]] — colony equipment supplying the portal weather layer.
* [[Remote Assay]]
* [[GPWS]]
* [[TCAS]]

[[Category:Inventory]]
[[Category:Avionics]]

Weather Radar - Revision history

codex: Create Weather Radar inventory article: 25,995 CR, properties, controls and October 2026 scanning display