National Weather Service
The National Weather
Service (NWS) is under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), which is under the Department of Commerce.
There are a variety of federal partners that make up NOAA. For
this discussion, those closely related to the NWS will be reviewed.
The NWS is divided up
into six regions: Alaska, Eastern, Central, Pacific, Southern,
and Western. Within each region are local NWS offices, usually
located in major cities or nearby. Additionally, there is the
National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP). Within
this area the Storm Prediction Center and Tropical Prediction Center
operate.
From a public
prospective the NWS is involved in forecasting, severe weather
watches/warnings, and other hazardous weather. However, there
are a multitude of resources that have developed from the NWS's
overall mission. The use of numerical guidance to model the
Earth's atmosphere; satellites to monitor clouds, rainfall,
atmospheric soundings; and weather RADAR are just a few of the
resources available. Additionally, the NWS is involved in El
Nino/Southern Oscillation research and other climatological
phenomena.
Much of the weather
data produced today originates from the NWS. While the private
sector 'value-adds' and distributes weather data, almost all of the
basic components come from the NWS.
Reference -
NOAA
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
NWS
- National Weather Service
NCEP
- National Center for Environmental Prediction
