NWS Baltimore/Washington SKYWARN Schedule

Thank you for your interest in the SKYWARN program! Our Fall 2025 schedule is coming together. Check back as additional classes will be added through early November. Basics SKYWARN Classes are open to all of the general public. All classes are free and open to the public.

Important notes:
-Winter, Severe, and Tropical classes require SKYWARN® Basics as a prerequisite.
-You may attend a class even if it is not in the county you reside in.
-Due to the high demand of classes we can not offer classes in every region every season.

About SKYWARN

SKYWARN, founded in the early 1970's is made up of a group of trained, dedicated amateur weather enthusiasts who work in conjunction with the National Weather Service by observing and reporting adverse weather conditions to promote public safety and minimize property damage. In the advent of Doppler Radar and other technologies, the science of weather forecasting has made great strides, but even with all the technology, the National Weather Service still is in need of 'ground truth' observers. It is through training that the NWS teaches interested volunteers to be safe, effective and accurate weather spotters who provide them with the needed ground truths.

SKYWARN, generally speaking, is placed on stand-by when a severe weather watch is posted by the National Weather Service. Once that watch is upgraded to a warning, SKYWARN becomes activated, and spotters are asked to make severe weather observations. After making an observation that is reportable, there are several ways to relay the information to the National Weather Forecast Office: telephone, amateur radio, social media, and an online storm report form.

Some of the reports are used to send out statements, warnings, and short-term forecasts to the public via the media. The reports also go into "Storm Data", which is a publication that documents severe weather across the country and can be used to create a severe weather climatology database of a specific county, city, or region of the country.

The classes are designed to educate the public on weather threats in this area, as well as strengthen the ties between the NWS and the local community. The more spotters the NWS has out there, the faster vital ground truth information gets to the NWS forecasters who make the decisions to issue life saving weather warnings. We generally teach between 15 - 25 classes in a year.

Due to limited extra staffing during the peak summer leave season, classes are generally taught between September and May.

Becoming a Spotter

WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO BECOME A SKYWARN® SPOTTER?

• You must at least be 18 years old to become a Spotter

• You must be able to observe the weather (no instruments required)

• You must have access to a telephone to call in reports or be able to report information through an Amateur Radio Network.

HOW DO I BECOME A SKYWARN® VOLUNTEER SPOTTER?

You are required to take the SKYWARN® Basics class offered by the National Weather Service Baltimore/Washington Forecast Office. This class is a pre-requisite for all other SKYWARN® classes offered by the NWS Baltimore/Washington Forecast Office. (It is also highly recommended that you take this course every three to four years as a refresher.)

The Basics class gives a general overview of the types of severe weather experienced in the Mid-Atlantic, the importance of the SKYWARN® Spotters, how to report severe weather to your local NWS office and the role of Amateur Radio in the Spotter Program. After taking the Basics course, you will be provided a spotter number via email with a printable spotter card attached.

Classes are typically taught in cooperation with County Emergency Management Officials at no cost. Other optional classes are provided for our spotters to learn more about hurricanes, winter storms, severe weather, and floods.

ON-LINE SKYWARN® COURSES

National SKYWARN® courses are also offered online by COMET on their MetED site (located here). These courses are also free, and can be of extra value to you with severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. However, the local information on the multitude of weather threats we get in our region is missing. It is because of this vital missing information that you will not be registered into our spotter database or receive a spotter number until you take our Basics SKYWARN® class taught by one of our meteorologists from the NWS Baltimore/Washington Forecast Office.

HOW DO I REGISTER FOR A CLASS?

Go to the Training Schedule tab at the top of this page, there is a listing of all classes along with registration links for each class. If you have any questions, please email: lwx-report@noaa.gov.

CLASSES OFFERED

Basics 

This course is a prerequisite for all other courses, except Flood. Basics is a good general overview of what it means to be a spotter as well as the basics of the different weather phenomenon that impacts the Mid-Atlantic. Upon completion of the course, you will be registered in the program by the NWS. You will receive a spotter code from the NWS within a couple of weeks. The Basics class includes: 

• The Basic Organization of the National Weather Service

• The Role and Importance of the SKYWARN Spotter

• Reporting of Hazardous Weather

• NWS Products and the Watch/Warning/Advisory system

• Thunderstorm, Flooding, Tropical and Winter Weather Threats

• The Role of Amateur Short-wave (HAM) Radio in the Spotter Program 

Flood

Training in the Flood class is a good overview of flood threats in this area. It is intended for everyone. The Flood class includes:

• Role of spotters & review of area

• What to report & how

• Types of Flooding

• Forecasting and Meteorology of Flooding

• Flooding Case Studies

• NWS products for flooding

Tropical

Training in the Tropical class is a good overview of tropical weather threats in this area. It is intended for everyone. Basics is a prerequisite for this class. The Tropical class includes:

• Types of tropical cyclones

• Ingredients of meteorology necessary for Tropical cyclones

• Hazards from tropical cyclones (storm surge, inland flooding, winds, tornadoes)

• Hurricane climatology (where they form, typical tracks, season)

• Local hurricane history

• How they are observed and forecast

• How to prepare and react?

Winter Weather

Training in the Winter Weather class is a good overview of winter weather threats in this area. It is intended for everyone. Basics is a prerequisite for this class. The Winter Weather class includes: 

• Winter Hazards in this Region

• Winter Normals and Extremes

• Winter Storm Ingredients

• NWS Forecasts and Products

• Role of SKYWARN and Reporting

• Winter Preparation and Safety

Severe Weather

Training in the Severe Weather class is a good overview of the severe weather threats in this area. It is intended for everyone. Basics is a prerequisite for this class. The Severe Weather class includes:

• Radar Basics

• Types of Thunderstorms

• Ingredients for Severe Thunderstorms

• Tornadogenesis

• Severe Thunderstorm Hazards

• Severe Weather Climatology

• NWS products and tools for Severe Weather

Training Resources

• National NWS SKYWARN Page
• Weather Spotters Field Guide
• Weather Spotters Field Guide Spanish Version (Guía Práctica del Observador del Tiempo)
• NWS Cloud Chart

Local Resources

• National Capital Area SKYWARN Support Group
• Print out a Spotter ID Card

Links to PDF Versions of our SKYWARN Classes

• SKYWARN® Basics (pdf)
• SKYWARN® Flood (pdf)
• SKYWARN® Severe (pdf)
• SKYWARN® Winter (pdf)
• SKYWARN® Tropical (pdf)

Forgot your Spotter ID? Questions?

Contact us at lwx-report@noaa.gov

Submit a Report!

What to Report?

Note: Lightning is not a reportable phenomenon, but lightning related damage and casualties are.