Do all the news stations get their weather data from the same source?

[JEDI]

ie: noaa.gov?

and use their own computer programs to interpret the data?

then give their computer models some fancy name (ie: doppler 9000) to diff themselves from other stations?

 

[who?]

The Doppler name is a reference to the fancy radar. My local station does refer to in house models but I think they also look at National Weather Service models.

 

[mmntech]

Short answer: yes

Long answer: They all have access to the same computer models provided by the government weather service. Meteorologists then have to interpret that data into a forecast that can be spoon fed to the public. It's a lot more complicated than reading numbers off a screen. TWC probably also has their own weather stations that they collect raw data from.

 

[SKORPI0]

http://forecast.weather.gov
http://www.wunderground.com

Local TV station meteorologist interprets the data and reports it to the public.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Short answer: yes

Long answer: They all have access to the same computer models provided by the government weather service. Meteorologists then have to interpret that data into a forecast that can be spoon fed to the public. It's a lot more complicated than reading numbers off a screen. TWC probably also has their own weather stations that they collect raw data from.

I used to work with a guy who was in the Air Force reserve. His MOS? Weather forecaster.

On slow days, he'd surf over to noaa.gov and bring up all sorts of crazy maps with air pressure currents and shit - not the stuff you usually see on TV - and then spend the next hour or two cussing out the weather guys on the radio for being stupid and wrong.

When he disagreed with the weather forecasters on the radio, he was probably right 9 times in 10.

It was actually pretty interesting.

 

[tnt118]

There are multiple places the data can come from. Local NWS offices, several universities provide models (Texas A&M is the one I'm most familiar with, pretty sure there are frequently used ones out of Florida and Ohio, too). The companies that provide the graphic computers also have internal models (WSI and WeatherCentral, WSI bought WeatherCentral 2-ish years ago). There are some national models (GFS, European, a handful of others).

There's a big divide even inside the industry as to how much personal analysis is necessary. Some folks repeat what the weather service says practically verbatim, even when it's pretty clear they are not correct. The science involved is no longer top priority in many people's opinion. Then there are some very well-versed mets who can look at the data and come up with an amazingly accurate forecast for a coming storm before it's on (if you'll pardon the pun) anyone else's radar. Some stations want a scientist, some want a pretty face regardless of credentials.

Edit:

The radar thing doesn't have a clear answer. Stations can own their own radar, with varying power, features and ability. The effectiveness of that also depends on having the equipment/computers at the station to display that information in a useful way. On the other hand, stations can simply use the radar data from the NWS, something I believe that's covered in the fees they pay to WSI (or whatever equipment provider they use). But you lose the ability to control the radar and all you have is the data they feed you.