Monday 17 November 2008

Whatever the weather

Hello there map lovers, I wonder if you've ever heard of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Data Buoy Center (NDBC), a part of the National Weather Service (NWS).
NDBC designs, develops, operates, and maintains a network of data collecting buoys and coastal stations positioned around our coast.
This from the NDBC website: NWS forecasters need frequent, high-quality marine observations to examine conditions for forecast preparation and to verify their forecasts after they are produced. Other users rely on the observations and forecasts for commercial and recreational activities. NDBC provides hourly observations from a network of about 90 buoys and 60 Coastal Marine Automated Network (C-MAN) stations to help meet these needs. All stations measure wind speed, direction, and gust; barometric pressure; and air temperature. In addition, all buoy stations, and some C-MAN stations, measure sea surface temperature and wave height and period. Conductivity and water current are measured at selected stations.
To support this network and other engineering/data collection projects, NDBC employs engineers, meteorologists, oceanographers, computer scientists, and other professionals. U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) members serve on the government staff to provide unique skills and interface with USCG for transportation support. An NDBC Technical Services Contractor (NTSC) supports NDBC with a staff of approximately 110 employees.


You can view a clickable map of Florida, showing all the buoy stations here. This is what it will look like

From the stations you will be able to get detailed weather information - what you are supposed to do with this information and whether you can do anything about it is another matter entirely!

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