Our Stories - National Weather Service Heritage
Content with Time Periods ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980) .
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980), Post-War Expansion (1945-1960), Weather and the War (1942-1945), Early Growth (1912-1941)Alaskan Air Inflation Buildings — Form Follows Function
The design chronology of Alaskan Upper Air Inflation Buildings is a lesson of how form follows function. Read More »
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Becoming a Weather-Ready Nation (Today and Beyond), Revolutionizing Observations, Forecasts & Dissemination (1990-Today), Modernization and Restructuring (1980-1990), ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980), Post-War Expansion (1945-1960)Then and Now: The National Hurricane Center
Officially founded in 1955, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) has been in existence for almost 70 years. Read its storied history here. Read More »
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980), blogsOne of Four: Hurricane Camille
On August 17, 1969, Hurricane Camille struck the Mississippi Gulf Coast, only one of four hurricanes to make landfall on the continental United States as a Category 5 hurricane on the Saffir Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. The rainfall, winds, and storm surge from Camille caused 256 deaths across several states: 143 on the Gulf Coast, and another 113 as a result of flooding in Virginia later in the week. All told, the damage caused by Camille totaled nearly $1.4 billion (about $10 billion today). For 36 years, Camille held the record as the most devastating hurricane to strike the Gulf Coast. Read More »
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980)Hurricane Agnes
Though the Atlantic Hurricane season officially begins on the first of the month, June hurricanes tend to be few and far between. However, in 1972, one of the most impactful June hurricanes on record began to form in the Gulf of Mexico: Hurricane Agnes. Read More »
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980)Tragedy at Teton: 1976 Dam Break Disaster
Disastrous dam failure, whether from natural or human causes, can occur with very little warning. Such was the case in southeastern Idaho in the summer of 1976, when the Teton Dam catastrophically failed. Read More »
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Becoming a Weather-Ready Nation (Today and Beyond), Modernization and Restructuring (1980-1990), ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980)Lasting Collaboration: The History of the National Ice Center
In working to achieve the mission of the agency, the NWS often collaborates with other organizations and groups to improve accuracy and protect lives. Read More »
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980)1970 Lubbock Tornado Kills 26; Injures Over 1,500
A violent F5 tornado struck Lubbock, Texas at night on May 11, 1970. It became a watershed event for the city and the field of severe weather research. Read More »
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980)The April 1974 Super Outbreak of Tornadoes
The second largest U.S. outbreak of tornadoes on record led to major changes in observation and dissemination technologies and a major shift in the way the National Weather Service prepares and issues forecasts. Read More »
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Becoming a Weather-Ready Nation (Today and Beyond), Revolutionizing Observations, Forecasts & Dissemination (1990-Today), Modernization and Restructuring (1980-1990), ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980)Scratching the Surface: A Photo History of Surface Analyses at the Weather Prediction Center
Though it has operated under many different names and used many different technologies to predict weather over the years, the Weather Prediction Center has been producing surface analyses since the very beginning. Read More »
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Modernization and Restructuring (1980-1990), ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980)Unpredictable: The President’s Day Storm of 1979
Forecasts for a winter storm over President's Day weekend 1979 called for 4-6 inches of snow. That was not to be; the President’s Day Storm paralyzed the Mid-Atlantic for days, leading to major forecast model improvements. Read More »
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980), The Satellite Age Begins (1960-1965)Dr. Robert White - Weather Bureau Chief and NOAA’s First Administrator
As NOAA's first administrator, Dr. White is credited with leading the agency into the numerical weather prediction and satellite eras, and is widely recognized as one of the most influential individuals in the field Read More »
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Becoming a Weather-Ready Nation (Today and Beyond), Revolutionizing Observations, Forecasts & Dissemination (1990-Today), Modernization and Restructuring (1980-1990), ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980), The Satellite Age Begins (1960-1965), Post-War Expansion (1945-1960), Weather and the War (1942-1945), Early Growth (1912-1941), The Weather Bureau Rises (1891-1912), Signal Service Years (1870-1891)The National Weather Service at 150: A Brief History
The National Weather Service celebrated its 150th Birthday on February 9, 2020. Read More »
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980)Almost Science Fiction: Hurricane Modification and Project STORMFURY
In the years between 1962 and 1983, hurricane observation took an enormous step in an ambitious direction that almost sounds like science fiction: human interference and the modification of hurricanes. Read More »
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980)The World Weather Building
In 1974, NOAA moves several of its Washington-area weather operations to a new facility in Camp Springs, Maryland. Read More »
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980)Tragedy on Lake Superior -- The Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald
In the wake of an intense autumn storm that thrashed the Great Lakes, an enormous ship met a watery grave. Read More »
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Revolutionizing Observations, Forecasts & Dissemination (1990-Today), ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980), Early Growth (1912-1941), The Weather Bureau Rises (1891-1912), Signal Service Years (1870-1891)The Many Faces of a Weather Bureau Office
The Weather Bureau sets up shop in whatever facility they can find -- not always a fancy government building, either. Read More »
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980)The Weather Office of the Future: Introducing AFOS
In the 1970's, the NWS introduces plans for the Automation of Field Operations and Services (AFOS), an ambitious computer network to replace the teletype networks of the past, and to automate some forecasts. Read More »
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ESSA to NOAA and Environmental Focus (1965-1980), The Satellite Age Begins (1960-1965)Supporting the Space Race
The Weather Bureau accepts NASA's request to provide weather support for the space program. Read More »