National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce

Tracking Winter Storm and Severe Weather Impacts Through This Weekend

Heavy mountain snow will continue into Thursday afternoon across the Cascades. Two fast moving storms will track from the southern Rockies to the Great Lakes Thursday and then Friday into Sunday with areas of gusty winds, and heavy snow. In the Southeast U.S., severe thunderstorms and heavy to excessive rainfall are forecast on Friday. Read More >

Upper Air Observations


Decoded Upper Level Winds

Plotted Upper Air Soundings

GOES Derived Atmospheric Vertical Soundings

Alternate Sources for Upper Air Soundings
Ohio State

California Wind Profiler Data Can be Found Here

Why Do Forecasters Still Rely on Weather Balloons?

Twice every day, from nearly 100 locations in the United States, the National Weather Service launches weather balloons, carrying instrument packages called radiosondes. Radiosonde sensors measure upper-air conditions such as atmospheric pressure, temperature and humidity, wind speed and direction. The data is important for aviation safety, and meteorologists use radiosonde information to prepare weather forecasts.