Applied Meteorology--Nonmedia There are a large number of corporations and organizations involved in weather forecasting. The federal government, primarily through the National Weather Service, is one of the biggest employers of applied--or operational--meteorologists. Jobs with the NWS range from positions at 120 local forecast offices all around the country to work at large, centralized facilities. Functions at local offices encompass a broad range of responsibilities. Key positions include: warning-coordination meteorologists, science and operations officers, hydrologists, and forecasters.
Warning-coordination meteorologists carry out, among other things, public outreach and liaison duties; science and operations officers deal with training and procedures issues; hydrologists provide river stage and flood forecasts; and forecasters are tasked with a number of different responsibilities, usually shared with others on shift. These responsibilities include issuing severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings and, in those areas affected, coordinating hurricane warnings with the National Hurricane Center (see below); issuing public and aviation forecasts and, at some offices, marine and fire-weather predictions; and perhaps functioning as a computer/software specialist.
The centralized organizations--there are nine--come under the umbrella of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) in Washington, D.C. Included beneath this umbrella are NCEP Central Operations (NCO) and the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center (HPC), both in Washington; the Tropical Prediction Center, of which the National Hurricane Center (NHC) is a branch (Miami, Florida); and the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) in Norman, Oklahoma. All nonmilitary numerical weather prediction macro-scale models are run at NCO. The HPC, among other duties, disseminates prognostic charts, quantitative precipitation forecasts, and flash flood alerts. The NHC has responsibility for tropical cyclone prediction in the Atlantic, Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and eastern Pacific. The SPC issues severe weather watches for tornado and severe thunderstorm outbreaks.
On the military side of things, the air force and navy each has its own meteorological service; in the case of the navy is a meteorological and oceanographic service. Military centralized prediction originates from the air force's Global Weather Central in Omaha, Nebraska, and the navy's Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center in Monterey, California. Local and regional military support operations are found not only nationwide, but worldwide, especially throughout Europe and the Pacific. Both services support the Joint Typhoon Warning Center on Guam in the western Pacific. Needless to say, naval meteorologists/oceanographers are found aboard ships too, primarily aircraft carriers.
Commercial meteorological organizations are found all across the United States, but are concentrated east of the Rockies. They range in size from one- or two-person operations plugging away in home offices to companies with hundreds of employees and global reach. The professional directory in the Bulletin of the AMS (BAMS) lists many of these companies. A few large nonmeteorological corporations with weather-sensitive operations (airlines and electric power utilities, for example) and some commodity trading firms have their own staff meteorologists.
Meteorological consulting organizations also cover a vast spectrum ranging from individual, self-employed consultants to large--even multinational--corporations. Consulting corporations include those with government and/or commercial contracts for services. Over the past decade, a number of giant firms that formerly focused on defense work have diversified into various peacetime endeavors. These endeavors range from relatively simple environmental studies to the development and deployment of sophisticated automated weather information systems and networks. Another significant market segment for meteorological consulting is found with environmental consulting firms that have departments devoted to air quality operations. Air quality work runs the gamut from environmental impact assessments to operational forecasting for air pollution potential.
Decision-assistance support to weather-sensitive industries is a new and somewhat expensive endeavor--because of the client education required--and not many companies have embarked on this effort. There are one or two that have, however, and they may have the inside track on opening up an innovative arena for the application of meteorology and climatology.
Some larger corporations involved in the various facets of meteorological consulting have their own marketing and sales divisions. The number of marketing people with a background in atmospheric science is relatively small, but comprises an important segment of applied meteorology, especially in the field of technical marketing.
Similarly, the number of meteorologists employed by the atmospheric measurements and instrumentation industry is relatively small, but they often are dealing with the leading edge of technology. Witness the recent strides made in remote-sensing capabilities with satellites and Doppler radars. Peacetime weather satellite applications is an area in which a number of firms formerly oriented more toward the defense industry have recently broadened their efforts. The names of some of the more prominent companies involved in this work can be found in the list of AMS corporate and institutional members carried in every issue of BAMS. Corporate names also are listed in the annual BAMS issue (each July) announcing scholarships and fellowships sponsored by industry and the AMS.
Other Corporations, Institutions, Organizations