6 ways NOAA scientists advanced our knowledge of the planet in 2020 6 ways NOAA scientists advanced our knowledge of the planet in 2020 NOAA scientists can get a lot done in a year. That’s one big takeaway from the 2020 NOAA Science Report, which outlines our agency’s key scientific accomplishments from 2020. Read more
NOAA scientists use drones to see tornado damage in remote areas NOAA scientists use drones to see tornado damage in remote areas Scientists hope images from the research drones will improve our understanding of tornadoes and lead to better forecasts. Read more
NOAA report highlights 2020 climate, weather, ocean research NOAA report highlights 2020 climate, weather, ocean research Launching uncrewed systems to monitor climate and ecosystem changes in the U.S. Arctic, sequencing the genome for endangered marine species, and improving weather forecasts with advances in regional models — these are just a few of NOAA’s scientific achievements in 2020. The newly released 2020 NOAA Science Report highlights the ways these accomplishments — and many more — provide the foundation for vital services that Americans use every day. Read more
New study shows promise of forecasting meteotsunamis New study shows promise of forecasting meteotsunamis Photographer's images aid research on rare Great Lakes wave On the afternoon of April 13, 2018, a large wave of water surged across Lake Michigan and flooded the shores of the picturesque beach town of Ludington, Michigan, damaging homes and boat docks, and flooding intake pipes. Thanks to a local citizen’s photos and other data, NOAA scientists reconstructed the event in models and determined this was the first ever documented meteotsunami in the Great Lakes caused by an atmospheric inertia-gravity wave. Read more
Short-range weather modeling application released to forecasting community Short-range weather modeling application released to forecasting community Data sharing will enable new innovations in numerical weather prediction science NOAA and partners have released the source code for its next-generation short-range forecast application to the weather research community to accelerate development of the model, which predicts atmospheric behavior on a timescale from less than an hour to several days, including critical life-saving weather and water forecasts during extreme events. Read more
New rating system charts a path to improved tornado forecasts New rating system charts a path to improved tornado forecasts All tornadoes -- whether large or small -- originate from thunderstorms, but not all thunderstorms are the same. Nighttime twisters, summer tornadoes and smaller events can be tougher to forecast. New research in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society presents a method for rating the skill of tornado warnings based on environmental challenges. Read more
NOAA Science Report features new data-gathering drones, advances in wind, weather and water forecasts 29Mar2023 Read more Discovering a 207-year-old whaling ship, advancing air-quality forecasts, improving storm surge and wind forecasts, and deploying the first-ever drone-based tagging of endangered whales. These are a few of the more than 60 stories about NOAA’s many notable scientific accomplishments from the past year that are featured in the 2022 NOAA Science Report, which emphasizes a wide range of impacts that NOAA science advancements have on the lives of Americans. Read more
Scientists discover hydrothermal vent activity along the Puy de Folles vent field 17Apr2023 Read more NOAA, Schmidt Ocean Institute, and partners recently embarked on the In Search of Hydrothermal Lost Cities expedition on the Schmidt’s Research Vessel Falkor (too) to locate and observe hydrothermal vent activity along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The team successfully located never-before-seen black smoker vents near the Puy de Folles vent field and the impressive ecosystems they support. Read more
Heat waves happen at the bottom of the ocean too 13Mar2023 Read more A team led by NOAA researchers used a combination of observations and computer models to generate the first broad assessment of bottom marine heat waves in the productive continental shelf waters surrounding North America. Read more
How deadly are dust storms? 5Apr2023 Read more A new research paper from NOAA’s Air Resources Laboratory published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society finds that dust storms – previously assumed to be rather rare and isolated to particular regions – are contributing to a larger number of U.S. traffic fatalities than are recorded. This research also proposes modifications to the current reporting classifications to more accurately capture dust storm impact. Read more
NOAA research in the stratosphere is taking off 2Mar2023 Read more Flying out of Eielson Air Force Base in Fairbanks, Alaska, a NASA WB-57 research jet carrying a payload of sampling instruments into the stratosphere will gather measurements of trace gases and aerosols in an undersampled region of the atmosphere. Read more