For-Profit Companies Can’t Easily Replace NOAA’s Weather-Forecasting Prowess

Could a private company create forecasts on its own without NOAA data?

It would be difficult for one company to provide comprehensive weather data in a reliable way that is also accessible to the entire public.

Some companies might be able to launch their own satellite, but one satellite only gives you part of the picture. NOAA’s weather observation network has been around for a long time and collects data from points all over the US and the oceans. Without that robust data, computer models, and the broad network of forecasters and developers, forecasting also becomes less reliable.

Analyzing that data is also complex. You’re not going to be able to take satellite data, run a model on a standard laptop and suddenly have a forecast.

And there’s a question of whether a private company would want to take on the legal risk of being responsible for the nation’s forecasts and severe weather warnings.

NOAA is taxpayer-funded, so it is a public good—its services provide safety and security for everyone, not just those who can pay for it.

If weather data was only available at a price, one town might be able to afford the weather information necessary to protect its residents, while a smaller town or a rural area across the state might not. If you’re in a tornado-prone area or coastal zone, that information can be the difference between life or death.

Is climate data and research into the changing climate important for forecasts?

The Earth’s systems—its land, water, and the atmosphere—are changing, and we have to be able to assess how those changes will impact weather tomorrow, in two weeks, and far into the future.

Rising global temperatures affect weather patterns. Dryness can fuel wildfires. Forecasts have to take the changing climate into account to be accurate, no matter who is creating the forecast.