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National Weather Service Reference Guide

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National Weather Service Reference Guide National Weather Service Reference Guide Purpose of this Document he National Weather Service (NWS) provides many products and services which can be T used by other governmental agencies, Tribal Nations, the private sector, the public and the global community. The data and services provided by the NWS are designed to fulfill us- ers’ needs and provide valuable information in the areas of weather, hydrology and climate. In addition, the NWS has numerous partnerships with private and other government entities. These partnerships help facilitate the mission of the NWS, which is to protect life and prop- erty and enhance the national economy. This document is intended to serve as a reference guide and information manual of the products and services provided by the NWS on a na- tional basis. Editor’s note: Throughout this document, the term ―county‖ will be used to represent counties, parishes, and boroughs. Similarly, ―county warning area‖ will be used to represent the area of responsibility of all of- fices. The local forecast office at Buffalo, New York, January, 1899. The local National Weather Service Office in Tallahassee, FL, present day. 2 Table of Contents Click on description to go directly to the page. 1. What is the National Weather Service?…………………….………………………. 5 Mission Statement 6 Organizational Structure 7 County Warning Areas 8 Weather Forecast Office Staff 10 River Forecast Center Staff 13 NWS Directive System 14 2. Non-Routine Products and Services (watch/warning/advisory descriptions)..…….. 15 Convective Weather 16 Tropical Weather 17 Winter Weather 18 Hydrology 19 Coastal Flood 20 Marine Weather 21 Non-Precipitation 23 Fire Weather 24 Other 25 Statements 25 Other Non-Routine Products 26 Extreme Weather Wording 27 Verification and Performance Goals 28 Impact-Based Decision Support Services 30 Requesting a Spot Fire Weather Forecast 33 Hazardous Materials Emergency Support 34 Interactive Warning Team 37 HazCollect 38 Damage Surveys 40 Storm Data 44 Information Requests 46 3. Routine Products and Services…………………………….…..…………………… 47 Public Forecasts 47 How We Forecast 49 XML Data 50 Radar Services 51 Hydrologic Services 53 Marine Services 54 Fire Weather Services 56 Aviation Services 57 Climate Services 60 4. Specialty Centers…………………………………………….………………………… 61 Storm Prediction Center 68 National Hurricane Center 71 3 River Forecast Center 74 National Climatic Data Center 78 Climate Prediction Center 80 Hydrometeorological Prediction Center 81 Space Weather Prediction Center 82 Aviation Weather Center 83 Tsunami Warning Center 84 National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center 86 5. Communication Channels…………………………………………………... 87 NWS Website 87 NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) 87 Emergency Alert System (EAS) 88 NOAA Weather Wire Service (NWWS) 89 Family of Services (FOS) 89 National Warning System (NAWAS) 89 Emergency Managers Weather Information Network (EMWIN) 90 Interactive Weather Information Network (IWIN) 90 iNWS 91 NOAAPort 91 NWSChat 91 Social Networking 91 6. Website Navigation………………………………..………...……………………….. 92 Hazards Display Organization 98 7. Outreach and Education…………………...…………….…………………………. 99 Activities 99 Safety Campaigns 100 Safety Rules 102 StormReady/TsunamiReady 106 Severe Weather Spotter Training 108 Education and Training Courses 112 Meteorology and Hydrology Career and Job Resources 115 8. Equipment………………………………………………..……………………………. 118 AWIPS 119 ASOS 119 COOP Observing Equipment 121 Doppler Weather Radar 121 Hydrologic Observing System 122 Marine and Tsunami Buoys 122 NOAA Weather Radio 123 Satellites 123 Radiosondes and Upper Air Soundings 124 Wind Profilers 125 9. Tables and Definitions…………………………………..…………………………... 126 4 1. What is the National Weather Service? he National Weather Service (NWS) is a Federal agency under the National Oceanic T and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Both NOAA and the NWS are agencies of the United States Department of Commerce (DOC). Formerly known as the Weather Bureau until January 1971, the NWS is comprised of meteorologists, hydrologists, hydro- meteorological technicians, climatologists, electronics technicians, computer specialists and management personnel. The NWS provides weather products and services in three major ar- eas: 1.) Official weather and water watches, advisories and warnings 2.) Data collection and weather/water forecasts 3.) Climate data and forecasts Department of Commerce (DOC) www.commerce.gov National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) www.noaa.gov National Weather Service (NWS) www.weather.gov Users of NWS Products and Services NWS data and products form a national informational database infrastructure that can be used by other government agencies, the media, the private sector and the general public. Courtesy FEMA Courtesy FAA 5 National Weather Service Mission Statement The National Weather Service (NWS) provides weather, water and climate data, forecasts and warnings for the protection of life and property and the enhancement of the national economy. View of inundated areas in New Orleans following the breaking of levees surrounding the city as the result of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Washington DC metro area snowstorm February 5-6, 2010. Aftermath of the Parkersburg, IA tornado, May 25, 2008. 6 NWS Organizational Structure 4,800 NWS Employees 122 Weather Forecast Offices 13 River Forecast Centers 21 Center Weather Service Units 21 Weather Service Offices 2 Tsunami Warning Centers 9 NCEP Centers 6 Regional Headquarters 7 County Warning Areas (CWA) Each WFO is given an area of responsibility, known as a County Warning Area or CWA for most forecast offices. The CWAs include the 564 Federally recognized Tribal governments. Alaska office areas are simply referred to as Areas of Responsibility and are comprised of boroughs. There are 122 WFOs in the NWS, which span the continental US, Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and Puerto Rico. All WFOs are responsible for issuing products and providing services to the counties in their CWA. San Juan 8 WFO IDs by State Alabama Illinois Montana Puerto Rico BMX Birmingham ILX Central Illinois BYZ Billings SJU San Juan HUN Huntsville LOT Chicago GGW Glasgow South Carolina TFX Great Falls MOB Mobile Indiana CHS Charleston MSO Missoula CAE Columbia Alaska IND Indianapolis Nebraska GSP Greenville AFC Anchorage IWX Northern Indiana AFG Fairbanks GID Hastings South Dakota Iowa LBF North Platte AJK Juneau ABR Aberdeen DMX Des Moines OAX Omaha American Samoa UNR Rapid City DVN Quad Cities Nevada FSD Sioux Falls STU Pago Pago Kansas LKN Elko Tennessee Arizona DDC Dodge City VEF Las Vegas MRX Knoxville FGZ Flagstaff GLD Goodland REV Reno MEG Memphis PSR Phoenix TOP Topeka New Jersey OHX Nashville TWC Tucson ICT Wichita PHI Philadelphia/Mt. Holly Texas Arkansas New Mexico AMA Amarillo LZK Little Rock Kentucky ABQ Albuquerque EWX Austin/San Antonio JKL Jackson California New York BRO Brownsville EKA Eureka LMK Louisville ALY Albany CRP Corpus Christi PAH Paducah LOX Los Angeles BGM Binghamton FWD Dallas/Fort Worth Louisiana STO Sacramento BUF Buffalo EPZ El Paso SGX San Diego LCH Lake Charles OKX New York City HGX Houston/Galveston MTR San Francisco LIX New Orleans LUB Lubbock North Carolina HNX San Joaquin Valley SHV Shreveport MHX Newport/Morehead MAF Midland/Odessa Colorado Maine City SJT San Angelo BOU Denver/Boulder CAR Caribou RAH Raleigh/Durham Utah SLC Salt Lake City GJT Grand Junction GYX Portland/Gray ILM Wilmington PUB Pueblo North Dakota Vermont Massachusetts Florida BIS Bismarck BTV Burlington BOX Boston JAX Jacksonville FGF Grand Forks Virginia Michigan KEY Key West Ohio LWX Baltimore/Washington DTX Detroit MLB Melbourne CLE Cleveland RNK Blacksburg APX Grand Rapids MFL Miami ILN Wilmington AKQ Wakefield MQT Marquette TAE Tallahassee Oklahoma Washington WMZ Tampa Bay Area APX Gaylord OUN Oklahoma City/ SEW Seattle/Tacoma Norman Georgia Minnesota OTX Spokane TSA Tulsa FFC Atlanta DLH Duluth West Virginia Oregon RLX Charleston Guam MPX Minneapolis MFR Medford GUM Guam Mississippi Wisconsin PDT Pendleton GRB Green Bay Hawaii JAN Jackson PQR Portland ARX La Crosse HNL Honolulu Missouri Pennsylvania MKX Milwaukee Idaho EAX Kansas City CTP State College Wyoming BOI Boise SGF Springfield PHI Philadelphia CYS Cheyenne PIH Pocatello/Idaho Falls LSX St. Louis PBZ Pittsburgh RIW Riverton 9 NWS Weather Forecast Office (WFO) Staff NWS forecast offices operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. At each WFO, roughly one third of the personnel on sta- tion are comprised of managers and support staff. The tables below show the different positions in each of these catego- ries. The other two thirds of the staff are comprised of forecasters and technicians. Management, program leaders and electronics technicians all work a typical daytime Monday through Friday schedule. On the other hand, the forecasters and hydro-meteorological technicians work rotating shifts to make sure the office is staffed 24 hours a day. Typically, there are two or three forecasters/hydro-meteorological technicians on shift at a time. However, during periods of active weather, such as severe weather outbreaks, extra staff may be utilized to support operations. Management Meteorologist-in-Charge (MIC) Electronics Systems Analyst (ESA) Science and Operations Officer (SOO) Warning Coordination Meteorologist (WCM) Data Acquisition Program Manager (DAPM) (some offices) Support Staff Administrative Assistant (ASA) Information Technology Officer (ITO) Service Hydrologist (some offices) Observation Program Leader (OPL) (some offices) Operational Staff Senior
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