The National Weather Service (NWS) invites interested industry partners to attend our Radar Next Industry Day on July 7, 2026. In conjunction with Industry Day, the Government will offer a limited number of one-hour One-on-One (1:1) sessions with the Radar Next program team for organizations that separately register and are selected for participation on July 7 – 8, 2026. Times are to be determined.

Background:

The NWS Radar Next program launched in 2023 to strategically plan and deploy the successor to the Next Generation Radar (NEXRAD) capability. With the NEXRAD projected to fall below required availability levels in the early 2030s, Radar Next is focused on delivering a modern radar system that ensures data continuity, addresses existing coverage gaps, and significantly improves data quality and performance. As the NWS transitions to an enterprise Cloud and integrates forecasters more directly with decision-makers, the Radar Next program is vital to aligning future radar capabilities with our mission while providing high-quality data to our partners and the commercial weather enterprise. The future radar network will provide a backbone of foundational observations essential for NWS service delivery, complemented by commercial data buys to fill coverage gaps. The program also emphasizes resiliency, exploring solutions such as mobile or transportable radars to mitigate extended outages and better support hyperlocal decision support activities.

Industry Day Objectives:

• Provide the broader Radar Next commercial marketplace with information on how the Radar Next program fits into  National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) overall priorities, share the program’s current status, and discuss the planned approach for Radar Next acquisition activities.
• Learn from Industry on current and emerging capabilities, including within the C-Band commercial radar data buy space.
• Promote robust competition and facilitate networking connections and teaming opportunities among interested partners through Industry Day participation.