Awesome visit!
OK,…read moreso we all know the NWS (National Weather Service) exists and they monitor weather. But how much more do you know?
For starters, everything starts with them...period! I am referring to the 122 offices nationwide in six regions. Each office has a geographic area of responsibility for not only monitoring the local weather, climate and atmosphere within its AOR (area of responsibility) but also the marine, aviation, fire and hydrology forecasts. To sum it up...their information let's all of us know how to respond, plan, prepare, etc. for natural and human-caused events.
They are the lovely people that interrupt your electronics to issue advisories, warnings, statements, watches, forecast emergency situations, etc. They monitor, collect and distribute information 24/7/365 to help keep us...the public...safe. They also monitor river and rainfall data, and launch balloons daily to gather upper-air weather data no matter what it may look like outside or the condition. Why? Because change happens all the time and we need to be prepared.
On our visit it was a quiet day at the NWS, which is a good thing. I'm sure when a hurricane is coming it's probably so crazy it's like Chicken Little and the sky is falling! Quiet = good thing! I'm sure it's more intense at certain times, like when they are monitoring a wild fire for example since it's human made and unpredictable. During emergencies situations...these people practically live there and hunker down. Yes, they sleep there and do what has to be done. Why? Because we need them to. We all appreciate the forecast, but in certain situations they truly are unsung heroes and this is something we really don't think about or consider. What would we do without them?
So I asked the crazy question as to why the local news guys on different channels or even the weather websites can reflect a different forecast. As stated earlier, it "starts" here and it does. They put the information out there and then however the news channel weather guy/gal interprets it, etc. is up to them and up to their interpretation if they want to add/change/adjust. The NWS is not responsible for the additional interpretation(s). Often the local channels or the websites other than NWS are close, but sometimes they can be wacky...right? At the end of the day, it all starts with the NWS and anyone can access this information in addition to their favorite channel, website, app, etc. The NWS tries to be the best and put out the best data they can. So, if you have doubt with whatever channel you are watching, the app you are using or the website you are viewing...go to the NWS for your fact checking.
A few gee whiz things:
1. Do you know what NOAA stands for? It is National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
2. The NOAA was originally formed in February 10, 1807. It was reorganized on October 3, 1970.
3. There are over 11,000 civilian employees and operations are supported by additional uniformed service members.
4. They monitor weather data collected from international weather stations in addition to theirs to help give you the best data, product and facts.
5. The local link to the Jacksonville page is: https://www.weather.gov/jax/
In closing I'd like to give a special shout out to Jessica who warmly welcomed us at the NWS and was a huge help in advance of and during our visit. A big shout out goes to Nate for the outstanding presentation and demonstration. We greatly appreciated it! {Go Bobcats!}