1. Be The Weather Guy Presented to UCALL on October 14, 2009
A guide to accessing and using public domain weather information via the world wide web
Presented to UCALL on October 14, 2009
by Dick Westergard
Certified Consulting Meteorologist

2. On the local forecast office page, let’s:
The ultimate starting point for Public Domain Weather Information within the U.S.:
From there, click the part of the country you want information for to get to the local forecast office for that area
On the local forecast office page, let’s:
Find a forecast for a specific spot
Explore the forecast in various formats
Look at the local radar
Look at local historical weather information
Check out a forecast discussion
Look at the local river and flood forecasts
Check for local weather warnings

3. For weather radar imagery within the U.S.:
From there, click the part of the country you want information for to get to the local Doppler radar for that area
On an active local radar, let’s:
Look at the variety of precipitation images
Explore Velocity images
Look at ways to move to an adjacent radar
Turn on AutoUpdate and do a manual refresh
Discuss the intensity information
Look at the color blindness tool
Check for local weather warning and other overlayss

4. For satellite imagery from NOAA:
From there, click a movie icon for the type of image you want to examine
On a sample area of the U.S., let’s:
Look at the variety of image types and discuss their uses
Find high and low pressure systems
Find moisture sources

5. To look at current hurricane information in depth:
From there, click on the storm system you want to track to get to the latest bulletins and graphical forecasts for that system
Let’s:
Check the a text bulletin and any associated graphical forecasts
Explore the Eastern Pacific section

6. From there, click on the type of graphic you want to explore
To look at current forecast graphics from the National Hydrometeorological Prediction Center:
From there, click on the type of graphic you want to explore
Let’s:
Check the graphical forecast for today over the contiguous 48 states
Look at a loop of recent weather
Loop the five day graphical forecast
Investigate quantitative precipitation forecasts

7. From there, select the date for which you want weather maps
To look at past weather graphics from the National Hydrometeorological Prediction Center:
From there, select the date for which you want weather maps
Let’s:
Pick a couple of dates (12/25/02) to review the weather graphics
Look at the types of graphics available

8. From there, select the model and the resolution you want to review
To look at the latest graphical output from the computer weather forecast models run at the National Centers for Environmental Prediction:
From there, select the model and the resolution you want to review
Let’s:
Look at a loop of the near surface output for the next few days
Look at some of the information that feeds the models

9. From there, select the parameter you want to convert or calculate
The National Centers for Environmental Prediction also offers a Meteorological Conversions and Calculations page at:
From there, select the parameter you want to convert or calculate
Let’s:
Calculate today’s wind chill
Convert the current temperature to Celsius

10. The National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service is another branch of NOAA. They archive weather information in a wide variety of formats for use by researchers, forensic meteorologist and climatologists at:
Let’s take a look at cooperative observations at:
and Local Climatological Data from a first order station at:

11. From there, select the place and time you are interested in
In cooperation with the University of Utah and the U.S. Forest Service the NWS Western Region maintains a database of current and past weather observations at:
From there, select the place and time you are interested in
Let’s:
Pick a NWS office warning area and a location
Check the weather there at an earlier date

12. From there, select the place and time you are interested in
NOAA’s National Data Buoy Center has current and past marine weather infomration at:
From there, select the place and time you are interested in
Let’s:
Pick a coastal area and a location
Check the weather there today and at an earlier date

13. Want to learn about many of the interesting aspects of meteorology at your own pace? Try the National Weather Service Southern Region JetStream course located at:
Let’s:
Look at their start page
Look at their weather on the web page

14. Other web sites with interesting information:

15. Finally, Let us offer you a portal to the world of free weather information through our home page at:
Among several useful links to other sites on my links page, (
there is a link to a copy of this presentation, ( The Weather Guy.ppt)
with all of the links we have looked at today.
And, If you have questions, our addresses are there too.