Do Radar Guns Work in Bad Texas Weather? Yes and No

First off they go by several different names. I'm talking about a radar speed gun, also known as a radar gun, speed gun, or speed trap gun. This is the device used by nearly all law enforcement agencies to measure the speed of moving vehicles. I recently asked my law enforcement friends "Do radar guns work in bad weather?" They all said, "Yes and no!"

For years I have been under the impression that radar guns do not work well in rainy and/or severe weather. While the temperature or wind does not affect operations of the radar gun, other types of adverse weather can.

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The two main radar guns used by law enforcement are the Doppler radar and the Laser radar. Both work extremely well at detecting the speed of a moving object. However, both are affected by certain weather conditions. The one main weather condition that will put a huge damper on whether a radar gun works effectively is rain.

The radar gun sends out a signal to determine the distance between its radar and the targeted vehicle, then calculates how fast that vehicle is going. When it's raining, water droplets affect the information the radar gun is receiving.

Whether it's a Doppler or a Laser, the speed guns are manufactured to be extremely accurate. The operator must be trained and certified to use the radar gun for traffic law enforcement according to the Texas Transportation code. While there are two types of speed guns, there are various applications, from handheld to vehicle mount to stationary.

One must keep in mind that radar speed gun manufacturers say the guns are about +/-2 mph accurate. When I was allowed to operate one during a ride-along, I observed that it was spot-on accurate.

My best advice: "Don't speed; drive nice."
Source: Wikipedia / Legal Beagle