Thick swarms of cicadas may be interfering with weather radar, NWS says
No matter how hard we try, we can't get cicadas off our radar. And, for the National Weather Service, it may be a literal problem.
The weather service's Baltimore-Washington account tweeted Saturday that if anyone has noticed fuzziness on its radar recently, there's a culprit that fits the bill – cicadas.
"You may have noticed a lot of fuzziness (low reflectivity values) on our radar recently. The Hydrometeor Classification algorithm shows much of it to be Biological in nature. Our guess? It's probably the #cicadas," the weather service tweeted.
You may have noticed a lot of fuzziness (low reflectivity values) on our radar recently. The Hydrometeor Classification algorithm shows much of it to be Biological in nature. Our guess? It's probably the #cicadas. pic.twitter.com/i990mEBJnl
— NWS Baltimore-Washington (@NWS_BaltWash) June 5, 2021
The new group of cicadas, Brood X, has begun emerging in the District of Columbia and at least parts of these 15 states: Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.
The critters are known to be loud but don't sting or bite. They are edible, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned that people with a shrimp allergy should not eat them.
Cicadas are expected to die off in late June into July, then be off the radar until 2038.
The cicadas have arrived in some states: Can they bite or sting? Are they dangerous to pets? What you need to know.
It's Taco Tuesday with a twist: Virginia chef keeps selling out of 'incredible' Brood X cicada dish
Follow reporter Asha Gilbert @Coastalasha. Email: agilbert@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: National Weather Service radar may be fuzzy because of cicadas: tweet
