National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce

Tracking Late Season Winter Storms

A moderate atmospheric river will continue to bring heavy snow over the Olympics, northern Cascades and northern Rockies Friday while heavy rain may bring flooding to coastal Oregon and Washington. A winter storm will continue to push across the Great Lakes and Northeast U.S. Friday and Saturday with areas of heavy snow and high winds. 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.