Forecasting Resources
National Weather Service
The National Weather Service is a government organization that provides official
weather forecasts to the public. They are also responsible for issuing all warnings and
advisories for their local region. You may access local forecasts and warning information
from their website here:
National Weather Service Hompage
Storm Prediction Center
The storm prediction center is a subdivision of the National Weather Service and specialize in forecasting severe weather for the entire country. They are responsible for issuing watches, convective outlooks, and severe weather discussions. The homepage contains the current convective outlook which shows the levels of risk for any given day. A slight risk means severe weather is possible, but no single type of severe weather is guaranteed to happen or have a great effect on life. Moderate and High risks are more substantial and tend to mean a tornado threat, and potentially outbreak is expected. It is important to look at the probabilites for each event and to read their public discussion to discern the real threat. You can visit the Storm Predicition Center website here:Storm Predicition Center Homepage
Storm Spotting and Chasing
If you are interested in severe weather and would like to be involved with the National Weather Service, you can become a storm
spotter that will relay reports to the National Weather Service. In order to become a spotter you must go through training that typically
occurs across the region numerous times in the spring. No meteorology degree or prior educational experience is needed to become a spotter.
To learn more about storm spotting and the skywarn program, please visit the following link:
NWS Skywarn Homepage
We would like to emphasize that storm "chasing" is dangerous and should not be attempted unless you have a thorough understanding of storm
structure and what goes into tornadogenesis. It may seem like an easy task from television shows, but it is quite difficult and many times
dangerous if you are not experienced.
Doppler Radar
Doppler radar allows meteorologist to look into a storm and get an idea of how intense the rain is, if any hail is present, and
if the winds are at a dangerous speed or rotational. This is typically the main cause for warnings as all types of severe weather
can be inferred by doppler radar. If rotation is spotted in the lower levels of a thunderstorm, a tornado warning may be issued and
the warning statement will say that, "a tornado has been doppler radar indicated." This is important because during the night reports
from spotters will diminish as it will be hard to visually see these threats.
To learn more about doppler radar, visit this website:
University of Illinois basics of Radar
Meteorology