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Weather & Environmental Hazards –
The Challenges of Awareness, Research, and Education in NJ

Friday, November 14, 2008

The National Weather Service (NWS) Skywarn Program

http://www.weather.gov/skywarn

The NWS Skywarn Program assists NWS staff for the issuance, update, cancellation, and verification of warnings. Volunteers are trained to observe and report the potential for hazardous weather (e.g., a wall cloud) or actual occurrence of severe weather (e.g., penny size hail). These observations supplement those provided by weather satellites, radars, and weather stations. They provide “ground truth” and fill in missing data gaps between land and sea based reporting stations.

Skywarn observations of rainfall and snowfall amounts and intensities are included in NWS Public Information Statements. Skywarn reports of tornadoes, water spouts, funnel clouds, hail, and wind damage are included in NWS Local Storm Reports. Publication Information Statements and Local Storm Reports are mass disseminated.

The NWS offers basic and advanced Skywarn classes. This basic class covers:

  • Severe weather climatology
  • Severe weather safety
  • Thunderstorm development
  • Fundamentals of storm structure
  • Identifying potential severe weather features
  • Information to report
  • Communicating spotter reports

Brian Ciemnecki has worked as a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Upton, NY since 2005, almost 4 years. Brian’s primary jobs include weather forecasting and data collection. In support of our National Weather Service Warning Program, Brian became the Skywarn Program Leader during the Spring of 2006. He recruited and trained volunteers to observe and report hazardous weather. These observations are used to assist in the NWS warning process, used for ground truth and also for verification. Brian received his degree from Kean University in 2003.