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Heavy Snow in the Cascades and Northern Rockies; Wintry Mix in the Northeast; High Winds in Southern California

Two more cold fronts will pass through the Northwest U.S. this week with heavy mountain snow continuing across the Cascades, and northern Rockies. A quick moving storm system will bring mixed precipitation including some freezing rain across the Northeast U.S. today. High winds could blow down trees and power lines in the mountains of southern California this evening through Thursday. 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.