Severe weather in Saskatchewan is no joke. Blizzards, freezing rain, tornadoes and thunderstorm producing baseball hail. The more time we get with a weather warning the better, and now new technology is being installed to help.

The brand new radar apparatus will give forecasters a better look at what's happening over the province. There will be a total of 20 weather stations across the country that will get the upgrades as part of a major project worth $83 million.

We will get the first one here in Saskatchewan at the Radisson site. One of two, according to John Paul Cragg with Environment Canada.

"We only have two sites in Saskatchewan, Radisson and Bethune, where there's radar on Saskatchewan soil. But we do have 3 other radar sites, two in Alberta and one in Manitoba that cover the province as well."

Cragg said that the new equipment will make a world of difference.

"With this new technology we can see further, better and more often. The Doppler range will be extended to 240km. Doppler radar is useful for many reason, but one of the main reasons is being able to see rotation in thunderstorms, as rotation in thunderstorms can indicate a potential tornado."

He also said that the new radar will scan every 6 minutes, which is an improvement from the current 10 minutes.

The Bethune site will also be receiving the upgrade to the new equipment, but that isn't projected to happen until 2019.