national weather service digital atmosphere

The “trick” is to add two zeros after the 14 to decode the cloud base in feet. Rapid City, South Dakota reported a cloud ceiling of “C14,” which is a cloud base at 1400 feet. A ceiling is the height of the cloud base layer. Stations reporting clouds may also report cloud ceilings. Temperatures are plotted in degrees Fahrenheit, wind in knots, cloud ceilings in feet, precipitation in inches, visibility in miles, and pressure in millibars. Use the Station Model Tutorial as a reference. The map below has station model plots at 5:00 p.m. Practice your station model plotting and decoding skills using the map below or use real-time plots by clicking the buttons above. Sample Station Model Plots - Practice Makes Perfect It is like riding a bike - once you learn, you never forget. The Station Model Plot is a universal language. It makes it possible to cram weather observations into small spaces on weather maps.

Science requires data and the Station Model Plot makes it easy to check local weather around the globe. Watching the sky inspires wonder, wondering inspires investigation, and investigation is at the heart of science. Whether we check the forecast to plan our day or develop a deeper interest in how the weather works we sometimes fix our gaze on the sky, and wonder. It is gathered, organized, computed, displayed, and run through computer forecasting routines. The volume of data is massive and includes weather observations from thousands of weather stations worldwide, satellite imagery, radar, weather balloons, ships at sea and aircraft crisscrossing the sky…and more. The Ferguson fire blazing near Yosemite National Park prompted park officials to close popular sections of it for the first time in 20 years (and during peak season), and the Holy fire down in Orange County forced tens of thousands of residents to evacuate their homes.įueled by extremely dry vegetation, record-setting temperatures and the aftermath of a years-long drought, fire seasons in California have grown more intense in recent years and death and destruction has become the norm.If data were water meteorologists would be drinking it like it is coming from a fire hose. That includes the 181,000-acre Carr fire, which has destroyed more than 1,000 homes in Redding, Calif., and taken at least eight lives. Other fires have blazed through tens of thousands of acres across the state.

The Mendocino Complex fire just north of San Francisco became the largest fire in state history earlier this week, scorching through 307,447 acres and destroying 119 homes as of Friday morning. Meanwhile, in California, 15 active wildfires are burning throughout the state as a destructive and record-breaking fire season rages on.

National weather service digital atmosphere