National Weather Center

This post was originally scheduled to be published on Monday, April 6, 2020. We are so happy to finally be able to share it with you.  National Weather Center tours are back starting Monday, September 11th!!

Did you know that all the weather alerts for the contiguous United States start in one place?  Yes, and that place is the National Weather Center (NWC) in Norman, Oklahoma.  And, did you know you could tour this 5-story building full of the best and brightest weather minds?  Another big yes.

I bet you’re wondering who you have to know to get a tour.  Fear not friends, there is no double secret handshake or word of the day.  A tour is only a click away on the OU Website.  You can’t just walk up for a tour so plan ahead.

Your tour will start at the front desk, give your name and get a badge.  But, back up just a bit.  I encourage you to take in the outside of the building when you arrive.  It’s a state of the art building which your tour guide will tell you about.  Maybe it’s because I’m the mom of a meteorologist, but I really like how they laid out the grounds with the huge National Weather Center sign.  I think pictures there are pretty much a requirement.

Anyhoo, back inside.

After getting your visitor badge you’ll gather in a glass room for the beginning of the tour.  I’ve done the tour four times now, guess that makes me a weather geek, but I learn new things each and every time.

On that first floor you’ll see the giant sphere that will most likely be projecting weather across the entire globe.  I say most times because they also broadcast movies and other fun stuff for the students and staff.  Every time I’ve been there it’s been weather on the sphere.  I think it is super cool and could look at it for hours.  I did mention above that I’m a full-fledged weather geek.

Also on the first floor is Dorothy, DOT3 and NOAA.  Dorothy is from the movie Twister and your guide will talk a lot about the science involved in researching tornadoes and how hard it really is to get one of these things in the exact right spot in a storm cell.   Appropriately, this display is right next to the Flying Cow Café which has a nice little selection of breakfast and lunch items.  The grill closes at 2 according to my last tour guide.  They used to have flying cow souvenirs, but sadly the cows flew away.  See what I did there.

If you’re lucky, really lucky, the tour will continue down to the garage where the chase trucks are.  These things are beasts.  They are seriously heavy duty and modified to withstand even the fiercest storm cell.

Next up is the observation deck at the top of the building.  It’s a great sight up there, you can see for miles.  On my last tour, the guide said you could see all the way to southern Kansas.  I think that’s a stretch but the landscape does go on forever.  On our very first tour when Jeff was deciding to go there for his Masters degree, the guide told us that the room is jam packed when storms are near.  Jeff often sends us pictures and videos when he and other meteorologists are tracking incoming storms. Once a warning is issued, you have to leave and apparently it’s a fight for the back of the line to do down.  Every person wants to watch until the last possible second.  I knew then and there that Jeff was in the right place.  To this day, I picture a bunch of people jockeying for a good view and the last view during storm season.

After that it’s back downstairs to the Storm Prediction Center or SPC for short.  My boy works with them.  There your guide will talk about all possible weather watches and how they decide to issue one.  This includes fire watches as well.  These super smart people watch weather patterns days in advance and determine which ones have the right conditions to require a watch.  These watch alerts then go out to the local National Weather Service (NWS) office for the finer points of which counties to alert.  While standing at the glass, take a look down at the crayon drawings on the shelf.  Even with all the fancy computer programs, many times they like to draw it out.  Fascinating stuff I tell ya.

After that we strolled down the hall to the National Weather Service office for this part of the state.  Here, lots of things are taking place.  Watches may become warnings and different weather gathering data is being analyzed.  I picture this place to be a hub of activity during peak storm activity.  I know that’s where I would want to be.  Both NWS and SPC are staffed round the clock so there are always eyes on the sky, so to speak.  More accurately, more eyes to the monitor.

Along the walls in both places are newspaper clippings of severe weather.  There is still much to learn even from past storms and these scientists never stop learning.  My inner weather geek would like to be there just watching all the action going on during a severe weather event.  Not to bother or ask questions, just to watch.  These people are saving lives, working day and night to save more.

The tour ends back at the weather sphere.  I’ve found the guides to be very knowledgeable and kind in their answers to questions.  They are just as excited as you are about meteorology.  Let me know when you go, maybe I’ll be there on my fifth tour!