When Was the National Weather Service Founded?
The National Weather Service is an extremely important service, and without it, it would be difficult to lead our lives as we do today. The Weather Service provides us with the information that is necessary to decide how we will dress for the day, if we should go out this night, and if we should stock up on supplies for the weekend. However, how much do you know about the history of the service?
The National Weather Service was founded on February 9th in 1870. The stated objective for forming the agency was to conduct meteorological analysis at military stations throughout the United States and its territories.
The Secretary of War was placed in charge of the Service and its objective. This decision was made by the President at the time, Ulysses S. Grant. The institution was named by Brigadier General Albert J. Meyer of the Army Signal Corps.
The institution was managed under the Department of Agriculture. It was considered a civilian enterprise. However, this was later changed. The control was transferred to the Department of Commerce in 1940.
Agencies of the National Weather Service
The National Weather Service is also known by its other name, the Weather Bureau. It is one of six different scientific agencies that compose the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration:
- National Ocean Service
- National Environmental Satellite
- National Marine Fisheries Service
- National Geodetic Survey
- National Integrated Drought Information System
The headquarters for the Bureau is in Silver Spring, Maryland. The Bureau is a government agency, and thus it is governed and subject to federal—rather than state—law.
Duties of the National Weather Service
Today, a large role for the National Weather Service is to broadcast to the general public, rather than scientists or government agencies. The information that needs to be broadcast to the general public is broken into different zones and subjects, and the “code” that is used throughout the bureau is translated into basic meteorological terminology.
The following are some of the different zones that are broadcasted:
- Zone Forecast Product
- Surf Zone Forecast
- Short Term Forecast
- Area Forecast Matrices
- Point Forecast Matrices
- Tabular State Forecast Product
- Area Forecast Discussion
- Graphicast
You can access any of these different zones and forecasts throughout the website. The National Weather Service is also the expert and source for hydrologic watches, warnings, and advisories throughout the United States. For example, if you hear a Flood Watch or a Flash Flood Warning, this has been issued by the National Weather Service.
The National Weather Service has benefited from improvements in technology. For example, the Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service allows the Bureau to be more efficient and accurate in its predictions of floods. It does this because the service allows the bureau to examine rivers, lakes, and streams at almost real time observation.
Other Divisions of the National Weather Service
The National Hurricane Center and the Central Pacific Hurricane Center are divisions of the National Weather Service, and they are responsible for observing tropical weather and potential hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean, and the central and eastern Pacific Ocean. Beyond hurricanes, these centers are also in charge of monitoring tropical cyclones and their proximity to the United States.
The Climate Prediction Center is another division of the National Weather Service, and it is responsible for any climate-related forecasts done by the National Weather Service. They seek to assess any variability in the climate, and they are particularly important to farmers. They analyze time scales for times that range from weeks to entire seasons as they form their predictions.
So, now that you know more about the National Weather Service, you can better appreciate their services the next time that you hear a forecast!