Most people think of the National

Weather Service as the people behind the scroll on the bottom of their

television screen during severe weather. After that, it is a case of out

of sight, out of mind. However, members of the staff of the National Weather

Service are always there, 24-7, manning the dozens of computers and monitors,

remaining ever-vigilant.

The National Weather Service in Peachtree City held an open house last

Saturday, letting members of the public see how they operate and get the

weather to the citizens when they need it most. Lans Rothfusz, the facility's

meteorologist in charge, stated that the open house, which is typically

an annual event, is important around this time of year because Georgia

is entering what he considers to be the "second season of severe

weather."

"Spring is a time when Georgia experiences a lot of severe weather,"

said Rothfusz. "However, between summer and winter, the period between

mid-November and January, another round of severe weather hits. This is

not the time of year to let your guard down."

While the staff of 50 employees at the National Weather Service in Peachtree

City monitor all of the weather, all the time, they really shine when

severe weather hits. Through the tour during the open house, visitors

got to stop at each station and see how the information is processed and

disseminated to the public.

The first stop on the tour was Operations. This area was highly technology

driven and featured 35 monitors visible from all over. This is where all

of the data collection and forecasting starts.

The Peachtree City branch of the National Weather Service is the largest

of six offices in Georgia. Not only are all six branches linked but all

of the offices in the nation are linked. The information can focus on

an extremely short term forecast for a very small area and can expand

to look at a long term forecast for a large area.

The second stop was where the weather radio broadcast center was located,

which was a few strides away. Reports are sent to the computers and an

entirely computer synthesized voice broadcasts the reports. The entire

system is digitally operated but if a transmitter goes out, certain buttons

can be pushed to make sure the necessary report goes to the required area.

The next stop was the warning area, which is where specific severe weather

warnings are generated. An operator picks an area on a map and the text

of that warning is generated and sent via computer to the weather radio.

The operator can look for specific things to narrow the search and also

links with the local authorities and their information as well as information

from amateur radio operators and volunteers in the field who give a first

hand account of the area that is being affected.

During severe weather, there are typically two amateur radio volunteers

at the branch. One operator will take the information and the other will

get the information out to other areas. There are several types of radios

on hand and one radio can go worldwide. One one occasion, it was even

known to reach the South Pole. Their information is very thorough and

data can chart everything from their current position to what time a gust

of wind hit. Their website, www.georgiaskywarn.com, can give more information

and allow citizens another place to chart weather.

The next stop on the tour was the Southeast River Forecast Center, which

is the second half of the National Weather Service. They cover an area

that includes all rivers East of Mobile Bay and stretches from some parts

of Virginia to Puerto Rico and as far west as Mississippi. They measure

all rainfall in that area through the use of rain gages, 1,500 in the

Southeast, and radar. Their job is important because not only can they

tell when areas are in danger of flash flooding but they can also predict

river floods.

Outside of the tour, visitors also got a chance to see a weather balloon.

Weather balloons are released every 12 hours in over 1,000 locations.

They rise 1,000 feet per second and burst at 90,000 feet. A parachute

guarantees a soft landing for instrumentation inside and the weather balloon

can give detailed atmospheric information. The weather balloons are used

in conjunction with radars to give the staff at the National Weather Service

the information needed to give the public the weather.

As for what the winter holds weather wise for Georgians, Rothfusz stated

that unlike other years, there are no indications either way this year.

"This is not an El Nino or La Nina year. It is pretty even and that

makes a long range forecast more difficult."

For naysayers out there who think that meteorologists are often wrong,

when asked about the weather for Sunday, the day after the tour, Rothfusz

guaranteed rain. He was right.