National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce

Major Winter Storm Ongoing in the Upper Midwest; Severe Weather Tonight from the Mid-South to the Ohio Valley

A major winter storm will continue to bring blizzard conditions, heavy snowfall, icing, and strong winds through Monday across the Upper Midwest and Upper Great Lakes. A line of storms will be capable of producing widespread damaging winds, tornadoes, and some large hail from the Mid-South to the Ohio Valley and the Southeast through tonight, moving into the Mid-Atlantic Monday. Read More >

Upper Air Observations


Decoded Upper Level Winds

Plotted Upper Air Soundings

GOES Derived Atmospheric Vertical Soundings

Alternate Sources for Upper Air Soundings
Ohio State

California Wind Profiler Data Can be Found Here

Why Do Forecasters Still Rely on Weather Balloons?

Twice every day, from nearly 100 locations in the United States, the National Weather Service launches weather balloons, carrying instrument packages called radiosondes. Radiosonde sensors measure upper-air conditions such as atmospheric pressure, temperature and humidity, wind speed and direction. The data is important for aviation safety, and meteorologists use radiosonde information to prepare weather forecasts.