Sources

Listed below are key sources of information on climate and weather. Additional locations will be added in the near future.

Climate Diagnostics Center identifies the nature and causes of climate variations on time scales ranging from a month to centuries. The goal of this work is to develop the ability to predict important climate variations on these time scales.

Climate Monitoring & Diagnostics Laboratory conducts sustained observations and research related to source and sink strengths, trends and global distributions of atmospheric constituents that are capable of forcing change in the climate of Earth through modification of the atmospheric radiative environment, those that may cause depletion of the global ozone layer and those that affect baseline air quality. CMDL accomplishes this mission primarily through long-term measurements of key atmospheric species at sites spanning the globe, including four fully-equipped Baseline Observatories.

Climate Prediction Center serves the public by assessing and forecasting the impacts of short-term climate variability, emphasizing enhanced risks of weather-related extreme events, for use in mitigating losses and maximizing economic gains.

Climate Services Division provides the strategic vision for climate services and oversees the NWS climate services program. It develops policy and requirements for climate prediction products and other services related to the period of a week out to one year, including seasonal forecasts and threats assessments.

National Climatic Data Center is the world's largest active archive of weather data. NCDC produces numerous climate publications and responds to data requests from all over the world. NCDC operates the World Data Center for Meteorology, which is collocated at NCDC in Asheville, North Carolina, and the World Data Center for Paleoclimatolgy which is located in Boulder, Colorado.

National Centers for Environmental Prediction is located in Camp Springs, Md., is "Where America's Climate and Weather Services Begin". Virtually all the meteorological data collected over the globe arrives at NCEP, where environmental scientists analyze this information and generate a wide variety of environmental guidance information.

National Weather Service is the primary source of weather data, forecasts and warnings for the United States. Television weathercasters and private meteorology companies prepare their forecasts using this information. The NOAA Weather Service is the official United States voice for issuing warnings during life-threatening weather.

Ocean Climate Laboratory develops improved ocean climatologies for annual, seasonal and monthly compositing periods; investigates interannual-to-decadal ocean climate variability using historical oceanographic data; builds scientifically, quality-controlled global oceanographic databases; facilitates international exchange of oceanographic data.