National Weather ServiceNational Weather ServiceStrategic Plan 2010Strategic Plan 2010 --20252025

Jack HayesNOAA Assistant Administrator for Weather Services, and

National Weather Service Director

Norman, OklahomaAugust 10, 2009

Global & National ChallengesGlobal & National Challenges� Impacts of climate change

� Increased vulnerability to weather, water, climate, and other environmental hazards

� Increased vulnerability to solar activity

� Large-scale impacts of droughts, floods, chemical makeup of oceans and rivers

NWS VisionNWS Vision

A safer, more informed and productive society where environmental knowledge empowers the Nation to makethe best decisions

� Services focused on impacts

� Earth system forecasts

� Data, information, andknowledge

Key Outcomes for 2025Key Outcomes for 2025

� Loss of life, displacement from high impact events reduced

� NWS data and information contribute to a national competitive advantage

� Environmental data, prediction capabilities, and decision support services integral components to:

� Managing and sustaining healthy ecosystems and communities

� Understanding and living with climate change

� Minimizing risks to our national security

2025: Decision Support2025: Decision SupportProviding the right information, at the right Providing the right information, at the right

time, to the right peopletime, to the right people

Key Objectives & Strategies� More accurate forecasts and increased lead

times for warnings

� Watches, warnings and advisories that increase responsiveness using social science

� Direct, interpretive forecaster support for .govs

� Readily accessible, user-centric data and information

� Levels of uncertainty included in forecasts and warnings

� Partnership and collaboration an integral component

2025: Services2025: ServicesBroadening service areas to address global and Broadening service areas to address global and

national challengesnational challenges

Key Objectives & Strategies� High-impact weather

� Space weather

� Integrated water resources

� Human health

� Ecosystems

� Climate

� Transportation

� Energy

2025: Partnerships2025: PartnershipsSharing assets, skills, and capabilities to meet Sharing assets, skills, and capabilities to meet

national needsnational needs

Key Objectives & Strategies

� Use of new, innovative dissemination and outreach methods

� Coordinated environmental literacy and weather safety campaigns

� Increased focus on leveraging new science and technology outside of NOAA

� New tools and applications to link environmental data and information

� Proactive collaboration with private sector

2025: Science & Technology2025: Science & TechnologyExploiting stateExploiting state --ofof --thethe --art S&T to support art S&T to support

evolving services and information deliveryevolving services and information delivery

Key Objectives & Strategies� Expanded, integrated and more robust

observations

� Integrated Earth system models

� Next generation forecasting and decision support system

� Data integration and interoperability

� AWIPS II…and beyond

� Communication / collaboration tools –onsite, offsite, virtually

2025: Data & Information2025: Data & InformationLinking data and systems from all sources to Linking data and systems from all sources to

aid decisionaid decision --makingmaking

Key Objectives & Strategies

� Internet as cornerstone of operating model

� Common standards to share and reuse data

� Integrated and interoperable systems

� Decision assistance tools

� 4-dimensional weather information database

� Mesonets; WIGOS

� Common operating pictures among partners

Key Findings ofKey Findings ofNRC Report on NoNNRC Report on NoN

� U.S. capabilities are uncoordinated

� Overarching national strategy needed

� Build infrastructure for data exchange

� Fill data gaps

� Spatial

� Temporal

� Elements

Proposed NoN Enterprise Proposed NoN Enterprise ApproachApproach

� Build the “plumbing”

� Metadata

� Policies

� IT capabilities

� Data management

� Communications

� Services

� Develop national standards/protocols

Proposed NoN Enterprise Proposed NoN Enterprise ApproachApproach

� Address Highest priority observing gaps

� Develop framework for National Mesonet

� Height of PBL

� Soil moisture & temperature profiles

� High-resolution verticalhumidity profiles

� Air quality measurements

� Urban, coastal & mountainousregions also priorities

Proposed NoN Enterprise Proposed NoN Enterprise ApproachApproach

�Collaborate with partners

� OFCM…Committee forIntegrated Observing Systems

� AMS Ad Hoc Working Groupon a Nationwide ObservingNetwork of Networks

NoN ChallengesNoN Challenges� Achieve Weather Enterprise consensus

� Coordinating entity

� Policy

� Data standards

� Protocols

� Services

� Overcome barriers limiting participation—private,academic, federal agencies

� Proprietary restrictions

� Complexity and competing interests

� Resources