February 9
WEATHER BUREAU DAY
In 1870, the United States Weather Bureau was authorized by Congress. We think people always just sat around and talked about the weather, but it took an act of Congress to do something about it! The weather bureau is officially known as the National Weather Service (NWS) and is a department of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
The National Weather Service protects the life and property of U.S. citizens by issuing forecasts and warnings for natural disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, and severe weather conditions. NWS communicates this information to the populace through an intricate and varied network. The NOAA Weather Wire Service or NWWS is the primary satellite communications system for NWS transmission. Warnings and other services are delivered in this manner to newspapers, radio and TV stations and emergency agencies. More than 6400 individual products are transmitted every day.
NWS also generates data to be delivered to the public over a nationwide network of FM radio transmitter sites. Most of the U.S. including Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam and American Samoa can receive these broadcasts. Cable TV weather channels and AM radio channels also broadcast this information.
No matter how you learn the weather forecast, the age old question still seems to be, “So how’s the weather?”
Those Were the Days, the Today in History service from 440 International
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