Weather Research And Development

Over the last 40 years, the federal government has poured more than $500 million into weather projects and research in Oklahoma, creating a formidable infrastructure including a statewide environmental monitoring system, the Oklahoma Mesonet and one of three existing U.S. Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement test beds.

Among the meteorological innovations that began in Oklahoma are:

• The first 4 Doppler radars in the U.S. were in Oklahoma.
• Oklahoma has the most comprehensive Mesonet system.
• Oklahoma is the only state linking the Mesonet with the state's climate survey.
• The most advanced National Weather Service Forecast Office is located in Norman.
• The National Weather Radar Testbed established at the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman will provide the first surveillance Phased Array Radar facility available on a full-time basis to the radar meteorological research community (see images at right).

National Weather Center
More than 700 meteorological professionals comprise the network known as the National Weather Center. The NWC expends some $60 million annually and has an economic impact of $100 million. Up to 80% of the severe weather warning technology used by National Weather Service was developed by the NWC.

The NWC partners give equal attention to the development of improved observation, analysis, assimilation, display, and prediction systems. Members of the NWC work with a wide range of government agencies to help reduce loss of life and property to hazardous weather, ensure wise use of water resources, enhance agricultural production, and develop renewable energy sources. They also work with private sector partners to develop new applications of weather and regional climate information that provide competitive advantage in the marketplace.

The NWC is comprised of the following partners:

• Center for Analysis and Prediction of Storms
• Center for Spatial Analysis
• College of Geosciences
• Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies
• Department of Geography
• Environmental Verification and Analysis Center
• International Center for Natural Hazards and Disaster Research
• National Severe Storms Laboratory
• NOAA Weather Partners
• National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office
• Oklahoma Climatological Survey
• OU Supercomputing Center for Education & Research
• Sasaki Applied Meteorology Research Institute
• School of Meteorology
• Storm Prediction Center
• University of Oklahoma

National Severe Storms Laboratory
The prestigious National Severe Storms Laboratory is based in Norman. The NSSL is a unit of the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or NOAA, and conducts research on all aspects of severe weather, helping to provide better forecasts and warnings of dangerous weather events.

Contact:
Oklahoma Fast Forward Team
800-879-6552