Hand of Noah Scuplture

NOAA Logo Information

NOAA Overview Information

NOAA Posters

NOAA Recreation Association Store

NOAA Silver Spring Campus

 

Hand of Noah Sculpture

The sculpture in front of NOAA's SSMC3 building (at 1315 East-West Highway) on its Silver Spring, Maryland campus is called "The Hand of Noah". It was given this title by its sculptor, Raymond Kaskey, in 1991, and symbolizes NOAA's stewardship of the environment.

Image of the Hand of Noah:
http://www.nurp.noaa.gov/HQ.htm

Sculptor: Raymond Kaskey:
Kaskey Wikipedia bio

Kaskey Studio contact information:
http://www.kaskeystudio.com/contact.html

 

NOAA Logo Information
For information on obtaining and using NOAA logos in various formats:
Contact Jerry Slaff, Publications Director, NOAA's Public Affairs Office:
jerry.slaff@noaa.gov

NOAA employees may access DOC, NOAA and NODC logos in various formats via the NODC Intranet's Reports and Information page. (Scroll down to the "Informational Links" category, then select the "Graphics: Logos" section.)

For further information, please visit the Department of Commerce Directives Management Program Web site. Select either Department Organization Orders (DOOs) or Department Administrative Orders (DAOs), and search "logo". This search should lead to documents such as:
Approval and Use of Seals, Emblems, Insignia and Logos (DA 201-1)
The Seal of the Department of Commerce (DA 201-17).

 

NOAA Overview Information

NOAA Functions and Programs
For general, introductory information about NOAA, see NOAA's homepage. See for example the 8 boxes in the upper right content area called "Explore NOAA": Weather, Ocean, Satellites, Fisheries, Climate, Research, Coasts, and Charting & Navigation. These links lead to webpages providing overview information for these NOAA areas of responsibility.

NOAA's Strategic Plan provides information on NOAA goals, programs, and issues:
New Priorities for the 21st Century: NOAA's Strategic Plan Updated for FY2006-FY2011.

NOAA Organization
See the NOAA Organization Chart, the NOAA Organizations page, and
NOAA Corporate Index

NOAA History
NOAA History web site - includes information on NOAA's organizational history; staff profiles/stories/tools/art/poetry; Civil War and World Wars' accounts from NOAA's predecessor agencies.

NOAA Heritage - NOAA-related historical documents and essays

NOAA and the Preserve America Initiative - NOAA's work to preserve its heritage resources

NOAA Locations
NOAA's Office of Communications is located in the Department of Commerce building in DC:
NOAA Office of Public Affairs, 14th Street and Constitution Ave. NW, Room 6217, Washington, DC 20230. Phone: 202-482-6090.

NOAA's line offices are located in four buildings in Silver Spring, Maryland, and there are also regional offices and laboratories throughout the country. Visit the homepages of the line offices/staff offices and look for an "Organization" or "About" or "Contacts" link for further infomration:

National Weather Service
National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service
National Marine Fisheries Service
National Ocean Service
Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research
Office of Marine and Aviation Operations
Office of Program Planning and Integration

 

NOAA Posters

Here is some online information about sales of NOAA-related posters:

Marine Sanctuaries Media - an online store for purchasing NOAA sanctuaries media (including poster-sized photos)

The Government Printing Office (GPO) sells various National Marine Fisheries Service Posters, such as:

• Marine Mammals of the Western Hemisphere (2005)
• Sea Turtles of the World (2005)
• Marine Fishes of the North Atlantic (2005)
• Marine Fishes of the Gulf and South Atlantic (2005)
• Fishes of the Great Lakes (2005)
• Marine Fishes of the North Pacific (2005)
• Marine Fishes of the California Current and Adjacent Waters (2005)
• Mollusks and Crustaceans of the Coastal United States (2002)
• Neptune's Table: A View of America's Ocean Fisheries (2002)

For information on other National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) posters, visit the NMFS web site and search the word poster in the search field.

For additional information about or requests for NOAA posters, please contact NOAA Public Affairs Outreach section at:

NOAA Office of Public Affairs/Outreach
1305 East-West Highway
SSMC-4, Room 1W514
Silver Spring, MD 20910
301-713-1208
noaa-outreach@noaa.gov

For information on other NOAA educational resources, see:
NOAA Education Resources Web site.

 

NOAA Recreation Association Store

NOAA's Recreation Association Store is located at the NOAA Silver Spring, Maryland campus, Building 2 (SSMC2) main level:

1325 East-West Highway
Silver Spring, MD 20910
301-713-0283
(open Monday-Friday, 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.)

The store sells NOAA T-shirts, mugs, caps, and laptop bags, as well as tickets for special events, and miscellaneous gift items.

For further information on Government Employee Associations, see:
http://www.recgov.org
Select the "NOAA" link in the content area, under the "Federal Employee Associations" heading.

 

NOAA Silver Spring, MD campus

Some information for those planning visits to the NOAA Silver Spring, MD campus:

NOAA Buildings
The four NOAA buildings are on East-West Highway, near the intersection of Colesville Rd. and East-West Hwy. Adresses:
SSMC1: 1335 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910
SSMC2: 1325 East-West Highway, " "
SSMC3: 1315 East-West Highway, " "
SSMC4: 1305 East-West Highway, " "

Metrorail and Buses
Take the Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority's Metrorail Red Line to the Silver Spring station.
Note: Metrobuses and Ride On buses also have stations ner the Silver Spring Metro station.

MARC Train
The Maryland Transit Administration's MARC Train Brunswick Line (operates Monday through Friday only) stops at Silver Spring.

Parking
Garage 58 is located at NOAA building SSMC3 (1315 East-West Highway). It includes some metered spaces, though it gets harder to park after mid-morning.
Garage 58 info
Garage 58 Frequently Asked Questions.

The next closest public parking garage with more available spaces for public parking is:
Bonifant-Dixon Garage (Garage 5) - 1101 Bonifant St., Silver Spring, MD 20910.

Silver Spring Information/Maps
Silver Spring Downtown Web site
Map of downtown Silver Spring
Map of NOAA area of downtown Silver Spring

 

  Return to the Table of Contents

NOAA History

NOAA Administrators - Dates of service

NOAA Employee Awards (DOC medals)

NOAA General Counsels - Dates of service

NOAA National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service Administrators - Dates of service

NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service Assistant Administrators - Dates of service

NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service History Resources

NOAA National Ocean Service Assistant Administrators - Dates of service

NOAA National Weather Service Assistant Administrators - Dates of service

NOAA Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research Administrators - Dates of service

NOAA Program Planning and Integration Assistant Administrators - Dates of service

NOAA records

 

NOAA Administrators - Dates of Service

Dates of service for NOAA Administrators, 1970 to the present, are:

Robert (Bob) M. White: December 1971 - July 1977
Richard (Dick) A. Frank: July 1977 - January 1981
John V. Byrne: July 1981 - October 1984
Anthony (Tony) J. Calio: October 1985 - September 1987
William (Bill) E. Evans: April 1988 - July 1989
John A. Knauss: August 1989 - March 1993
D. James (Jim) Baker: May 1993 - January 2001
Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr.: December 2001 - present (Lautenbacher bio)

 

NOAA Employee Awards (DOC medals)

To find information on NOAA employees who have received Department of Commerce medals/awards, please see:

NOAA History Web site's Department of Commerce Medal Recipients page.

If you are looking for news stories on awards for a particular year, you may wish to visit NOAA Central Library for print versions of old NOAA-wide newsletters and/or online locations of old issues of:

• ESSA World (1966-1969)
• ESSA News (1965-1970)
• ESSA (1970)
• NOAA Week (1970-1976)
• NOAA (1971-1986)
• NOAA News (1976-1981)
• This Week in NOAA (1984-1986)
• NOAA Report (2001-2006) the 2001-2006 run of NOAA Report is online
• NOAA Magazine (2001-2007) the 2001-2007 run of NOAA Magazine is online
• Access NOAA (March 9, 2001-March 3, 2008) the 2001-2008 run of Access NOAA is online
• NOAA World (April 2008-present) the April 2008 to present run of NOAA World is online

If you have a specific year you want to check against the programs from the awards ceremonies, contact Michael Osver at the Department of Commerce, who maintains the programs from 1949 to the present:
Michael Osver, MOsver@doc.gov

  

NOAA General Counsels - Dates of service

Dates of service for NOAA General Counsels, 1971 to the present, are:

Raud Johnson: August 1971 - October 1972
James W. Brennan (Acting): 1973
William C. Brewer, Jr.: 1974 - 1977
Eldon V.C. Greenburg: January 1978 - July 1981
Robert J. McManus: September 1981 - December 1985
Daniel W. McGovern: January 1986 - February 1988
Timothy R. Keeney: July 1988 - 1989
Thomas A. Campbell: July 1989 - January 1993
Meredith J. Jones: July 1993 - May 1994
Terry D. Garcia: September 1994 - March 2, 1997
Monica Medina: March 1997 - September 1999
James A. Dorskind: December 1999 - January 2001
Craig O'Connor (Acting): 2002
James R. Walpole: May 2002 - April 2007 (Walpole bio)
Jane C. Luxton: May 29, 2007 - present (Luxton bio)

  

NOAA National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service Administrators - Dates of service

Dates of service for NOAA National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service Administrators, 1970 to the present are:

Thomas S. Austin: 1970 - 1978
Tom Potter: 1978 - 1982
John H. McElroy: 1982 - 1986
Thomas N. Pyke, Jr.: 1986 - 1992
Robert S. Winokur: 1993 - 1999
Gregory W. Withee: 1999 - 2006
Mary Ellen Kicza: 2006 - present (Kicza bio)

  

NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service Assistant Administrators - Dates of Service

Dates of service for National Marine Fisheres Service Assistant Administrators, 1970 to the present, are:

Philip M. Roedel: 1970 - 1973
Robert W. Schoning: 1973-1977
Terry L. Leitzell: 1978 - 1981
William H. stevenson (Acting) - 1981
William G. Gordon: 1981 - 1986
William E. Evans: January - December 1987
James W. Brennan: 1988 - 1989
William W. Fox: 1988 - 1992
Nancy Foster (Acting): January - October 1993
Rolland A. Schmitten: 1993 - 1999
Penelope E. Dalton: 1999 - 2000
William T. Hogarth: 2000 - December 2007
John Oliver (Acting): January 1, 2008 - February 10, 2008
James W. Balsiger(Acting): February 11, 2008 - present (Balsiger bio)

 

NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service History Resources

NOAA Central Library Resources
NOAA Central Library's collection includes some historical publications about NMFS and its predecessor agencies. Please visit the NOAA Libraries' Catalog
In the Subject field, search for such terms as:

• National Marine Fisheries Service History
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service History
• United States Fish Commission History
• Baird, Spencer Fullerton, 1823-1887

See also:
NOAA Central Library's digitized collection of United States Fish Commission Annual Reports, 1871-1940

NOAA History web site's Stories and Tales of the Fisheries Service area - scroll to see the links.

NOAA History web site's History of the National Marine Fisheries Service

NOAA History web site's The Origins and Early History of the Steamer Albatross

NOAA Photo Library's National Marine Fisheries Historic Fisheries Collection albums

An Analytical Subject Bibliography of the Publications of the Bureau of Fisheries, 1871-1920 - By Rose M.E. MacDonald; Washington, DC: U.S. GPO, 1921 (Bureau of Fisheries Document No. 899)

Fishery Publication Index, 1920-54: Publications of the Bureau of Fisheries and Fishery Publications of the Fish and Wildlife Service by Series, Authors, and Subjects; Washington, DC: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1955.
SH11 .A4467 no.36

Fishery Publication Index, 1955-64: Publications of the Fish and Wildlife Service by Series, Authors, and Subjects; Washington, DC: U.S. Bureau of Commercial Fisheries, 1969
SH11 .A4467 no. 296

Fishery Publication Index, 1965-74; Washington, DC: NOAA National Maine Fisheries Service, 1977
SH11 .A4467 no. 400

Fishery Publication Index, 1975-79 - Lee C. Thorson; Seattle, WA: NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service, 1981
SH11 .A4467 no.437

Fishery Publication Index, 1980-85: Technical Memorandum Index, 1972-85; Seattle, WA: NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service, 1987
SH11 .A44672 no.62

Other NOAA Resources
National Marine Fisheries Service 125th Anniversary Homepage
(Click on a year to access a timeline for that decade.)

External Resources
1. Smithsonian Institution Archives Finding Aids
Record Unit 7184: United States Bureau of Fisheries, Records, circa 1877-1948

2. If you are looking for officially retired federal records of NMFS or its predecessor agencies, they would be at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). In NARA's Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States, see:

Record Group 370: Records of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(See section 370.7, Records of the Northwest Regional Office (Seattle, WA) of the NMFS, 1960-76)

Record Group 22: Records of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
(See section 22.4, Records of Divisions of the U.S. Fish Commission and the Bureau of Fisheries, 1969-1941)

For further information about conducting research at NARA, see:
National Archives Research

  

NOAA National Ocean Service Assistant Administrators - Dates of service

Prior to 1983, the National Ocean Service was called the National Ocean Survey.   Dates of service for National Ocean Survey/National Ocean Service Assistant Administrators, 1970 to the present, are:

Don A. Jones: October 3, 1970 - April 30, 1972
Allen L. Powell: May 4, 1972 - July 31, 1979
Herbert R. Lippold: July 31, 1979 - November 30, 1982
Paul Wolff: January 30, 1983 - July 7, 1988
Virginia Tippie: January 8, 1989 - November 4, 1991
Stanley Wilson: February 9, 1992 - June 2, 1997
Nancy Foster: June 2, 1997 - June 2000
Richard Spinrad: May 27, 2003 - September 30, 2005
John H. Dunnigan: January 22, 2006 - present (Dunnigan bio)

  

NOAA National Weather Service Assistant Administrators - Dates of Service

Dates of service for Weather Bureau Heads/National Weather Service Administrators, 1870 - present, are:

General Albert J. Myer: 1870 - 1880
General William Babcock Hazen: 1880-1887
Major General Adolphus Washington Greely: 1887 - 1891
Professor Mark W. Harrington: 1891 - 1895
Professor Willis L. Moore: 1895-1913
Professor Charles F. Marvin: 1913-1934
Dr. Willis L. Gregg: 1934 - 1938
Dr. Francis W. Reichelderfer: 1938 - 1963
Dr. Robert M. White: 1963 - 1965
Dr. George P. Cressman: 1965 - 1979
Dr. Richard E. Hallgren: 1979 - 1988
Dr. Elbert W. "Joe" Friday: 1988 - 1997
Robert S. Winokur: 1997 - 1998
Brigadier General (USAF Retired) John (Jack) J. Kelly, Jr.: 1998 - 2004
Brigadier General (ASAF Retired) David L. Johnson: January 2004 - June 2007 (Johnson bio)
Mary Glackin (Acting): June 12, 2007 - September 15, 2007 (Glackin bio)
John L. "Jack" Hayes: September 2, 2007 - present (Hayes bio)

 

NOAA Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research Assistant Administrators - Dates of service

Note: In the 1970s and part of the early 1980s, the Office now known as the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) was called the Office of Research and Development.

Dates of service for the Assistant Administrators since it has been known as the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) are:

Joseph O. Fletcher: December 25, 1983 - ca. 1989
Ned A. Ostenso: October 8, 1989 - January 2, 1996
Alan Thomas (Acting): February 5, 1996 - June 30, 1997
Elbert W. "Joe" Friday: July 1, 1997 - June 30, 1998
David L. Evans: December 27, 1998 - September 7, 2002
Louisa Koch (Acting): September 8, 2002 - October 5, 2003
Richard D. Rosen: October 6, 2003 - October 2, 2005
Richard Spinrad: October 1, 2005 - present (Spinrad bio)

  

NOAA Program Planning and Integration Assistant Administrators - Dates of Service

Dates of service for Program Planning and Integration Assistant Administrators, 2002 to the present, are:

Mary Glackin: 2002 - 2003 (Acting)
Mary Glackin: 2003 - June 12, 2007 (Glackin bio)
Paul Doremus (Acting): June 12, 2007 - August 30, 2008 (Doremus bio)
Laura K. Furgione: August 31, 2008 - present (Furgione bio)

  

NOAA records

For information on NOAA's records at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), see this section of NARA's Guide to Federal Records:

Records of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 1860-1993
(bulk: 1954-93) - Record Group 370
Note that this collection contains records of NOAA's predecessor agencies as well as those of its more current component offices.

Related records in other record groups at NARA include:

• Records of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1868-1955 (bulk: 1870-1972) - Record Group 22
• Records of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, 1807-1965 (bulk: 1817-1965) - Record Group 23
• Records of the Weather Bureau, 1735-1979 - Record Group 27
• Records of the Hydrographic Office, 1754-1971 (bulk: 1837-1971) - Record Group 37

For information on conducting research at NARA, see:
http://www.archives.gov/research/start/

For information on records management policies and practices at NOAA, see:
NOAA Administrative Management and Executive Secretariat - Records Management
This page includes links to NOAA"s Records Management Guide and records disposition schedules, contact info for the Agency Records Management Officer and NOAA's Records Liaison Officers, and related information.

  

  Return to the Table of Contents

Fisheries

(Note: See also the NOAA History section of this FAQs page for fisheries-related information on NOAA's history.)

Reference Sources on Fish Species

Listed below are some helpful reference sources on fish species:

• Common and Scientific Names of Fishes from the United States, Canada and Mexico (American Fisheries Society publication)
• The Fisheries of North America: An Illustrated Guide to Commercial Species (description) - by Robin W.A. Rodger
  Halifax, Nova Scotia: Canadian Marine Publications, 2006.
  Entries include illustrations and facts on preferred common and market names referenced to The Seafood List, scientific names referenced to ITIS and FishBase aliases, and other info.
  NOAA Central Library Call number: SH219.R63 2006
  (Or search this title in other library catalogs or on web sites of onine booksellers for details).
• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) - database supported by several U.S. federal agencies which provides taxonomic information on plants, animals, fungi and microbes of North America and the world
• Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Dept. of Vertebrate Zoology, Division of Fishes
  (Scroll to the link to "Search the Catalog Database and view available images of fishes in the Division of Fishes Collection".)
• FishBase - a global information system on fishes
  (Search by common name, scientific name, or use the glossary.)

  Return to the Table of Contents

Oceans

Marine Science and Technology Journals - bibliography and NOAA access information

Names of and facts about Oceans and Seas

  

Marine Science and Technology Journals - bibliography and NOAA access information

An annotated bibliography of Marine Science and Technology journals, compiled by two marine science librarians who are members of the International Association of Aquatic and Marine Science Libraries and Information Centers (IAMSLIC), constitutes one of the chapters of Bowker's "Magazines for Libraries" (15th ed., 2006): pp. 706-714. This chapter is also available online in the Scholars Archive at Oregon State University.

It includes an introduction, lists of Basic Periodicals and Basic Abstracts and Indexes for the marine sciences, and an alphabetically arranged list of journal titles with bibliographic information and annotations about scope and topics covered.

Webster, Janet G. and Barbara A. Butler, Marine Science and Technology, in Magazines for Libraries, 15th ed. RR Bowker, 206, pp. 706-714.
(Scroll to the gray box called "files in this item" and select "View/Open".)

Users of NOAA Central Library's Web site will find links to full-text of many of these titles from the EJournals page or the NOAA Newsletters page.
(As noted on the EJournals page, some journals are restricted to specific NOAA Washington, DC area campuses, while others are freely available to anyone.)

Some journals may be available in hard copy only, and would not be listed on the EJournals page; search for any titles you don't see on the EJournals page in the NOAA Libraries' Catalog.

  

Names of and facts about Oceans and Seas

Here are some resources which provide names of and/or facts about oceans and seas of the world:

• Holt, Rinehart and Winston World Atlas - Oceans
  (Select ocean name of interest on the globe to access more detailed maps of the ocean, including some sea names.)
• Profile of the World's Oceans and Seas (Fact Monster, from Information Please)
• Principal Oceans and Seas of the World with Hydrographic Codes by Institution - CIA World Factbook)
  (Scroll down to see alphabetical list.)
• World Ocean Database and World Ocean Atlas files - NOAA National Oceanographic Data Center
• "Ocean" entry in Encyclopedia of Earth
  (includes info on Atlantic, Arctic, Indian, Pacific, and Southern Oceans, including percentage of Earth's total surface which they cover, and their areas, in square kilometers and square miles)

  Return to the Table of Contents

Weather/Climate Data

(Note: See also the NOAA History section of this FAQs page for weather-related information on NOAA's history.)

Atlantic and Caribbean Hurricane Season Summaries

Eastern Pacific Hurricane Season Summaries

Hurricane Katrina

Local Climatological Data, Edited

National Weather Service Contact Information

Past Weather (How to Research)

Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale

Weather Glossaries

 

Atlantic and Caribbean Hurricane Season Summaries

The Atlantic and Caribbean hurricane season runs from June 1st through November 30th. For end of season hurricane summaries, see:

National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) Worldwide Weather and Climate Events page.
Select year of interest, then look for Atlantic Hurricane Season link for that year. The "Climate of [year] Atlantic Hurricane Season" page has links to monthly and seasonal information, as well as information on individual hurricanes and storms.

See also:
National Hurricane Center Homepage
Scroll down to the (current year) "Season Summaries and Reports" heading; under the "Atlantic" subheading select months of interest, or the "Tropical Cyclone Reports" link, which links to NHC reports for each hurricane and tropical storm.

 

Eastern Pacific Hurricane Season Summaries

The Eastern Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15th through November 30th. For end of season hurricane and tropical storm summaries, see:

National Hurricane Center homepage
Scroll down to the (current year) "Season Summaries and Reports" heading; under the "Eastern Pacific" subheading select months of interest, or the "Tropical Cyclone Reports" link, which links to NHC reports for each hurricane and tropical storm.

 

Hurricane Katrina

Here are some recommended resources on Hurricane Katrina impact and recovery, including NOAA resources, other federal resources, Katrina imagery, and economic impact information:

NOAA Resources
Environmental Impacts of Hurricane Katrina page
(Links to information on NOAA's work with other agencies to evaluate the potential environmental impacts of Katrina on living marine resources)

National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) web site's Climate of 2005: Summary of Hurricane Katrina page
(includes overview, storm meteorology and background, rain, wind, and pressure, impacts of the storm, and link to a graphics archive)

NCDC Worldwide Weather and Climate Events - 2005: 2005 Atlantic Hurricane Season page

Hurricane Katrina: A Climatological Perspective: Preliminary Report
NCDC Technical Report 2005-01 (October 2005)

National Hurricane Center web site's 2005 Tropical Cyclone Archive: Hurricane Katrina Advisory Archive

Other Federal Resources
Hurricane Katrina: Providing Oversight of the Nation's Preparedness, Response and Recovery Activities - Government Accountability Office, September 28, 2005
(Testimony before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Committee on Energy and Commerce, House of Representatives)

The Federal Response to Hurricane Katrina: Lessons Learned - The White House, February 2006

A Failure of Initiative: Final Report of the Select Bipartisan Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina - U.S. Congress, House Select Bipartisan Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina (February 15, 2006)

A Performance Review of FEMA's Disaster Management Activities in Response to Hurricane Katrina - Department of Homeland Security, Office of the Inspector General - March 2006

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) web site's Disasters and Emergencies: 2005 Hurricane Season page
(information on HHS actions, health and safety issues, and many links to 'Key State Government Agencies' in the region)

FirstGov.gov web site's "Gulf Coast Recovery Office" page
(U.S. Government portal to government information, with links to information on FEMA assistance and other government assistance, health and safety, and frequently asked questions)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Response to 2005 Hurricanes site

USA Freedom Corps web site's Response and Recovery: Hurricane Katrina page
(information on options for donating funds, goods, and services to hurricane relief and recovery efforts, as well as volunteer opportunities in affected areas or one's own community)

Katrina Imagery
NOAA National Geodetic Survey (NGS) web site's Hurricane Katrina Images page

NASA Hurricane Season 2005: Katrina (featured images)

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) web site's Hurricane Katrina Impact Studies page
(pre- and post-storm 3D topography, before and after photo comparisons, post-storm quick response photos)

Economic Impact
Macroeconomic Effects of Hurricane Katrina
Congressional Research Service (CRS) Report for Congress - September 13, 2005 (updated periodically)

 

Local Climatological Data, Edited

"Local Climatological Data, Edited" is a publication by month for major U.S. cities, showing 3-hourly, daily, and monthly values for temperature, relative humidity, snow/ice, precipitation, cloudiness, and wind speed/direction.

Please see NOAA's National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) web site
On the sidebar, under "Purchase Data" select "Most Popular".
On the next page, scroll down to the "Most Requested A (Local Climatological Data Edited, U.S.)" category, then select "2. Quality-Controlled (QCLCD)".
On the next page, select "LCD Serial Publication System"; this takes you to the "Local Climatological Data, Edited" Publication.
Select the State and then the weather station nearest you, then the year/month(s) of interest.

If you need further assistance with accessing NCDC data, please contact the NCDC:
828-271-4800
ncdc.info@noaa.gov

You could also contact your state climatologist to ask for this data. Please see: American Association of State Climatologists
Select your state on the U.S. map or select your regional or State climate office from the dropdown menu.

 

National Weather Service Contact Information

To submit a question or comment directly to a NOAA National Weather Service (NWS) expert, visit:

NWS Office of Climate, Water and Weather Services
This page allows you to note your affiliation and select a category for your weather question.

For further information on NOAA's weather resources, you may wish to visit the National Weather Service homepage, or call NWS Headquarters: 301-713-0090.

To contact your local forecast office, see:
NWS Offices and Centers

 

Past Weather (How to Research)

Non-Certified Data
For non-certified data for fairly recent past weather (e.g. previous day/week/month/year), it may be available through NOAA's National Weather Service (NWS). First, select an NWS Forecast Office near you.

Look for the "Climate" category on the sidebar; select "Local" under that category. You will go to a page featuring different sorts of weather data for the area, with tabs for the following categories: Observed Weather, Climate Locations, Climate Prediction, Climate Resources, Local Data/Records, Astronomical Data, and "NOWData". The NOWData tab is especially useful in leading you to a variety of weather fields you can combine:

• products (daily data for a month, daily almanac, monthly averages/totals, monthly occurrences, monthly extremes, daily extremes, daily/monthly normals, record extremes, and First/Last dates)
• locations (cites)
• variables (maximum, minimum or average temperatures, precipitation, snowfall, snow depth, heating degree days, cooling degree days, and growing degree days), and
• choice of years (current year; last year; 1971-2000).

After selecting the desired radio button under each category, select "Go" to generate your results.

Certified Data
As noted on NOAA's Past Weather page, you may contact NOAA's National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) to ask about which of their resources best addresses the type of weather, date, and location you are interested in:
National Climatic Data Center (NCDC)
828-271-4800
ncdc.info@noaa.gov
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/ncdc.html
On the sidebar, under the "Data & Products" category, select the "Free Data" link for descriptions of and links to free NCDC resources. Or under the "Purchase" category, select the "Most Popular" link for descriptions of and links to NCDC resources which bear a cost for non-subscribers. See especially the various 'local climatological data' databases.

As noted above, some NCDC resources are free, while others bear a cost. You may also contact your nearest Federal depository library to find out if it has a subscription to NCDC resources of interest which you may be able to use at that library.

Or contact your State Climatologist.

 

Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale

NOAA Resources
Please see NOAA National Weather Service (NWS) Tropical Prediction Center/National Hurricane Center web site's Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale page.

There is additional information on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale near the end of NOAA's Hurricane Basics brochure.

See also NOAA Miami Library's Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale page.

External Resources
A table listing hurricane speeds according to the Saffir-Simposon scale is located on Louisiana State University's Southern Regional Climate Center Web site's Hurricane Intensity Scale page.

  

Weather Glossaries

NOAA National Weather Service Glossaries
NOAA's National Weather Service (NWS) glossary contains information on more than 2,000 terms, phrases, and abbreviations used by NWS.

Some of the National Weather Service's programs have their own glossaries which focus on their subject areas, for example:
Aviation Weather Center Acronym Glossary

Visit the NWS office or program of interest to see if their web site might offer a glossary, or search 'glossary' in the NWS web site's search engine, and browse the results.

American Meteorological Society (AMS) Glossary
The American Meteorological Society's Glossary of Meteorology, 2nd edition, (published in 2000) contains over 12,000 terms, many from the newer disciplines of satellite meteorology and numerical weather prediction. Search the second edition of the AMS Glossary online.

Note: A browseable 1999 version of the AMS Glossary of Atmospheric Terms is also available online at:
http://www.ametsoc.org/amsedu/WES/glossary.html.

Other Resources
In addition, a Google search of 'weather glossary' should lead you to weather glossaries on web sites such as weather.com.

  

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