Texas is weather sensitive, diverse State, yet
it has numerous data-void areas. For example, if you live in a rural area
today , weather
maps and five-day forecasts for Austin, Corpus, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston,
Lubbock, or San Antonio may not provide adequate weather information to meet
your specific needs. Consequently, you must adjust the forecasted arrival
of weather fronts and associated temperatures and rainfall expectations.
All too often, such adjusted predictions are not specific enough, but they
are the critical unknown for many weather sensitive activities. By
making targeted improvements
in weather and climate data availability and access we believe the quality
of life and economic efficiency of Texas can be improved.
National Weather
Service (NWS) forecasts are getting better and better, but they
can always benefit from more, timely, better, data for their forecast models.
Today, the NWS uses the advanced Doppler weather radars. upper air profilers
and GPS systems to provide more timely weather information than ever before.
However, they have neither the mandate nor the funds to observe local conditions
everywhere, or to service specific applications better handled at the State
and local level, by State agencies, or private consulting meteorologists
and industry. The NWS serves as a willing partner with local agencies in
sharing data. One dramatic success story has been the NWS's use of data
from extensive quality network in Oklahoma (and elsewhere). Oklahoma was
the state with a fully operational statewide mesonet system. The Oklahoma
Mesonet, operated by the Oklahoma Climatological
Survey , has 114 automated sites with at least one in each of the 77
counties. The Oklahoma Mesonet has provided timely and useful data to meteorologists,
emergency planners, utilities officials and the public, with the State's
citizens the winners. |
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