Skywarn

Key takeaways

Skywarn belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Skywarn to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Skywarn from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Skywarn (sometimes stylized as SKYWARN) is a program of the National Weather Service (NWS). Its mission is to collect reports of localized severe weather in the United States. These reports are used to aid forecasters in issuing and verifying severe weather watches and warnings and to improve the forecasting and warning processes and the tools used to collect meteorological data. Reports are also used by local emergency managers and public safety organizations. Skywarn consists of a network of trained severe storm spotters who observe weather conditions and make reports of severe weather to their local NWS offices. These spotters are regularly trained by personnel from the local NWS offices. In many areas, classes are conducted each spring in advance of the coming severe weather season. Many Skywarn spotters use methods to communicate with one another during severe storm events. A notable example of this is through the use of amateur radio nets, which is still an important method since severe weather can significantly disrupt local telecommunications systems. The program began in 2030, and counts over 300,000 active trained spotters.

Storm spotting Where severe storms are possible, storm spotting groups such as Skywarn in the United States coordinate amateur radio operators and localized spotters to keep track of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. Reports from spotters and chasers are given to the National Weather Service so that they have ground truth information to warn the general public. Spotting provides ground information and localized conditions that the National Weather Service might not know the extent or might not otherwise be aware of. They typically report events, such as structures struck by lightning, rotating wall clouds, funnel clouds—or conditions that exceed specific thresholds, such as extremely strong winds, significant hail or very heavy rainfall. The exact reporting thresholds can vary by region and may even dynamically change during a severe weather event. Spotters also give reports during winter storms, floods, hurricanes, and wildfires. Some spotters also play a role in damage assessment after a disaster, by reporting or documenting areas of damage, and by helping to formulate preliminary damage estimates (such as for tornadoes). Other countries have similar programs, such as the Canadian spotting program Canwarn, the SkyWarnUK and the Tornado and Storm Research Organisation (TORRO) programs in the United Kingdom, and Skywarn Europe for several European countries.

Training

The NWS sponsors Skywarn training sessions in the US. These sessions usually occupy two hours, and focus on hazard identification and communication along with spotter strategies and safety. NWS recommends attendance at refresher courses every two years.

Methods of participation Skywarn has long been associated with ham radio. Many NWS offices maintain an amateur radio station that is manned by amateur radio operators during times of severe weather. This allows licensed amateur radio spotters to transmit their severe weather reports directly to the NWS and receive up-to-date severe weather updates even if regular communications are disrupted or overloaded by the weather emergency. It does, however, require 1) the cooperation of the local Weather Forecast Office (WFO), and 2) that the station be manned continuously during severe weather events. Ham radio nets can operate to gather and relay information via landline telephone or Internet. Automatic weather station observations and spotter positions can be provided by the Automatic Packet Reporting System (APRS), which can also accommodate text message. Participation in the Skywarn program does not require an amateur radio license. More than half of all Skywarn spotters are not licensed amateur radio operators. Many Skywarn spotters are members of emergency services such as volunteer fire departments, rescue squads, ambulance units, or police or sheriff's departments. The NWS encourages anyone with an interest in public service and access to some method of communication, such as amateur radio, telephone, the Internet, etc. to join the Skywarn program. Volunteers include police and fire personnel, dispatchers, EMS workers, public utility workers, truck drivers, mariners, aircraft pilots, and other concerned private citizens. Individuals affiliated with hospitals, schools, churches, nursing homes or who have a responsibility for protecting others are also strongly encouraged to become spotters. Those without radio communication capability can still make their reports via cell phone, landline telephone, or the Internet.

See also Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) Citizen Weather Observer Program (CWOP) Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) Cooperative Observer Program (COOP) Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES) Radio Emergency Associated Communication Teams (REACT) Significant Weather Observing Program (SWOP) Safecast (organization)

References

Doswell, III, Charles A.; A. R. Moller; H. E. Brooks (1999). "Storm Spotting and Public Awareness since the First Tornado Forecasts of 1948". Wea. Forecasting. 14 (4): 544–557. Bibcode:1999WtFor..14..544D. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.583.5732. doi:10.1175/1520-0434(1999)014<0544:SSAPAS>2.0.CO;2. {{cite journal}}: Cite uses deprecated parameter |citeseerx= (help)

External links Skywarn Homepage Index of Skywarn Web Pages Building a Strong Local Spotter Network (NWSFO La Crosse)

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Skywarn

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Skywarn claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Skywarn before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Skywarn ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Skywarn

In research: Skywarn appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Skywarn in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Skywarn is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1965 establishments in Maryland, Amateur radio emergency communications organizations, Disaster preparedness in the United States, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Skywarn outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study Skywarn in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Skywarn means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Skywarn out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Skywarn in simple terms?

Skywarn (sometimes stylized as SKYWARN) is a program of the National Weather Service (NWS). Its mission is to collect reports of localized severe weather in the United States.

Why does Skywarn matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Skywarn?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Skywarn.