Version 1 of the NOAA/CIMSS LightningCast model uses GOES-R ABI images to predict the probability of lightning in the next 60 minutes at any given location. It is being transitioned to NOAA/NESDIS operations. LightningCast v2 has been developed and is being evaluated at NOAA’s Hazardous Weather Testbed. Version 2 incorporates MRMS Reflectivity at -10oC, which is... Read More
One of the defining characteristics of spring in the upper midwest is a land surface that warms up much more quickly than the many lakes do. There’s a couple of reasons for this: water itself has a higher heat capacity than soil does, sun penetrates into the lakes somewhat which... Read More
In the afternoon and evening of 23 April 2026, numerous tornadoes touched down across the Great Plains of the continental United States. The storm reports gathered by NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center show a line of tornadoes extending from central Iowa down to north central Oklahoma, accompanied by numerous reports of large hail... Read More
April 22, 2026: Happy Earth Day! The first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22, 1970. The idea was conceived by then Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson and an estimated 20 million Americans participated on that first day, which was approximately 10% of the US population back then. You can read... Read More
