Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site boulder.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!sdcsvax!sdcrdcf!hplabs!hao!cires!boulder!jon From: jon@boulder.UUCP (Jon Corbet) Newsgroups: net.flame Subject: Its always safe to flame the weather Message-ID: <218@boulder.UUCP> Date: Fri, 28-Sep-84 11:16:10 EDT Article-I.D.: boulder.218 Posted: Fri Sep 28 11:16:10 1984 Date-Received: Sun, 30-Sep-84 03:45:54 EDT Organization: National Center for Atmospheric Research Lines: 23 [Some of us work in the weather field, you know!] Let me try to give a front line view of weather forcasts from what I modestly think is one of the leading institutions in the field ("peeling back the foreskin of science" :-) TV and radio weather people are more showtime personalities than actual meteorologists. They have had some training -- a minor or perhaps a bachelor's in meteorology, but it does not go too deep. They are the people who (1) could not get one of the hard-to-come-by research jobs, or, most often, (2) have no interest in research, and would rather make the $60K to $100K that TV weather people are paid (!). They are (usually) capable of understanding the bulletins from the National Weather Service and presenting them, but, and here's the important part --> They are unable to correct these bulletins for their area or changing conditions! It is not too surprising that they are wrong. Here at NCAR, I can get some pretty good forecasts if I ask the right people. -- Jonathan Corbet National Center for Atmospheric Research {hplabs|seismo}!hao!cires!boulder!jon