The following is one of my articles that originally appeared on
Whatever-Weather.com. It is the first of a two-part blog entry about Skywarn, a very important volunteer organization.
“Skywarn Spotters Help Save Lives” is the title of a news article I would love to see one day. So far, I have not personally seen this one. Skywarn spotters are the unsung heroes of the weather geek community. While they are normally trained by meteorologists and by people with in depth knowledge of meteorology, spotters in many communities are just every day people with a love of the storms.
I have a special place in my heart for Skywarn because I was lucky enough to be a volunteer trainer for the Twin Cities Metro Skywarn during my time in Minnesota. I truly enjoyed the experience. Every community across the country handles Skywarn differently. In some regions, spotters can only be emergency officials trained directly by the National Weather Service. In other areas, the training can be done by volunteers like myself, who have received the training from the NWS and who have been deputized to go out and train others. The volunteers I had the privilege of teaching ranged from children to first responders.
So what do Skywarn spotters learn?
They learn safety first. Spotters are not chasers. There is a difference. Normally spotters stay close to home in a fixed location where they have a clear view of the coming storm. Spotters are taught the basic parts of a thunderstorm, where the hail would most likely fall, where the tornado would likely be located if there is one, and which side of the storm is the safest to be when spotting. They are also taught to be aware of the environment on all sides of them, again for safety’s sake. Spotters don’t want to stand under power poles or trees, or drive into a flooded roadway, or be situated in the direct path of the storm. Safety is the most important thing they learn before they learn how to make a report.
Although it may vary a bit from region to region, spotters make reports to one specific controlled location. That information is then passed on to the local NWS office (if Control is not located in the office) and pertinent emergency officials. Spotters are typically asked to report if there is hail, the measured size of the hailstones (NO guessing, please!), rotating wall clouds, measured wind speeds, wind damage, and of course, the rare tornado. Other information may be requested by Control, but that varies from region to region and storm to storm.
Why are spotters so important?
Well-trained Skywarn spotters can make the difference in whether or not the warning systems are activated. Meteorologists can only tell so much from their radars. We can see that the ingredients are there for hail or tornadoes, but unless there are reports from the storm’s location, any warnings are based on Doppler indications. In my experience as a broadcast meteorologist, people don’t take “Doppler indicated” warnings as seriously as warnings based on Skywarn spotters’ reports. It is an unfortunate, but true fact. That is why our spotters play such an important role. Another reason is that sometimes the storm doesn’t appear to have the ingredients for severity on radar. A trained spotter watching the storm can make all the difference if he sees that storm spin up a tornado. This scenario happens on occasion. The warning is based solely on spotters in the field and the warning saves lives.
Meteorology is still a young science, and is far from perfect. Weather is something that affects everyone and is observed by everyone. So why not ask those who are more interested and passionate about it than others to help us meteorologists get the information needed to protect lives and property. That is exactly what Skywarn spotters do. I thank all of them for their service.
Part two of this entry will come later in the week and will include information on Skywarn in the Triangle Area.
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