CAMANO ISLAND — If predictions for another La Nina winter with lots of cold temperatures and rain come true, at least we’ll have state-of-the-art radar to let us know how bad it’s going to be.

Both the federal government’s brand new radar station at Copalis Beach on the Washington coast and its current station on Camano Island will be using dual polarization radar, which provides a more complete picture of weather systems than conventional Doppler radar.

The new $9 million station at the coast began operations last week, said Johnny Burg, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Seattle. A dedication ceremony for the new station is scheduled for Thursday.

The Camano Island station, located just off Camano Hill Road on the north central part of the island, closed down operations for 12 days beginning Monday so it can be retrofitted with the more sophisticated radar, according to the weather service. It’s scheduled to be back up and running Oct. 9, Burg said.

Dual polarization, or polarimetric, radar sends out vertically shaped radar signals in addition to the horizontal signals sent out by even the most advanced radar stations now. When the signals bounce back, they show clouds in greater depth.

This enables forecasters to better predict all aspects of precipitation, said Ted Buehner, a weather service meteorologist.

It gives a better estimate of amount and makes it easier to identify whether it’s snow, rain or hail. It improves forecasters’ ability to identify areas of heavy rainfall, is more able to detect thunderstorms, and better predicts altitude levels for snow.

The weather service plans to eventually retrofit all 170 of its stations around the nation with dual polarization technology, officials say. Five of those stations are located in the Northwest. In addition to Camano Island and Copalis Beach, the others are in Spokane, Portland and Pendleton, Ore.

The Copalis Beach station was built to provide a better picture of weather coming in from the Pacific Ocean. The Camano Island site’s radar view of low altitudes over the ocean is blocked by the Olympic Mountains, creating a blind spot, said Steve Genser, an electronics technician for the weather service.

This gap in the system was spotlighted by a 2009 study, which in turn led to the coastal station being built, weather officials said. Weather service officials have credited Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., for getting the money for the study and the station.

The weather service is predicting a second consecutive winter with La Nina conditions, a naturally occurring phenomenon in which cooler-than-average Pacific Ocean temperatures produce wetter and colder weather than usual.

La Nina typically occurs every three to five years, occurring in consecutive years about half the time, according to the Climate Prediction Center, a sister agency of the weather service.

Bill Sheets: 425-339-3439; sheets@heraldnet.com.

See it yourself

To view images from the new radar station in Copalis Beach, visit http://tinyurl.com/42smzys.