NWS Changing NOAA Weatheradio Configurations

John De Block, the Warning Coordination Meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Birmingham has advised us that they will be changing the counties that the NOAA Weatheradio stations in Birmingham and Tuscaloosa are being reprogrammed based on transmitter coverage areas.

In summary, the Birmingham transmitter has been programmed to include alerts for Tuscaloosa County and the Tuscaloosa transmitter has been programmed to include alerts for Jefferson County.

Here is the full note from John:

Based on some upgrades over the past few years to our NOAA Weather Radio software, we are in the process of adjusting the counties that are warned for a given transmitter on the fringes of the coverage.  While we have several areas we’re looking at, let me illustrate with one of the most pressing areas of concern that we have had.

If you examine the (theoretical) coverage map for the Tuscaloosa transmitter, you will notice that portions of extreme eastern Tuscaloosa County and western Jefferson County do not have good reception from the Tuscaloosa transmitter.  That transmitter currently broadcasts warnings for Tuscaloosa County, but not for Jefferson County.

Next, if you look at the (theoretical) coverage map for the Birmingham transmitter, you will notice that portions of eastern Tuscaloosa County and western Jefferson County are expected to have GREAT reception from the Birmingham Transmitter.  Currently, the Birmingham transmitter does not broadcast warnings for Tuscaloosa County.

[One tidbit of information to let you in on, is that these coverage maps are not necessarily representative of actual reception, thus the “theoretical” caveats above.  They are projected coverage maps produced by the folks up at HQ NWS based on terrain and transmitter specifics, and do not take into account all the other “little” things that determine actual reception.]

Effective immediately, we are beginning a test phase that will add Tuscaloosa County warnings to the Birmingham transmitter, and Jefferson County warnings to the Tuscaloosa transmitter.  Unfortunately, the only way to test this set up is to make the change and try it out.  Obviously, for the folks in west Jefferson County, it’s useful to be aware of storms coming out of Tuscaloosa.  While there may not be much benefit to broadcast Jefferson County warnings on the Tuscaloosa transmitter, and the coverage map would indicate otherwise, we have heard of some folks in west Jefferson County getting better reception from the Tuscaloosa transmitter.  We’ll have to take their word for that!

We will be making some other adjustments in the near future, but this is an obvious need in an area with a growing population and is worthy of testing immediately.  Over the next few weeks, we will be looking at other overlapping coverage areas and making tweaks as necessary.  Once we have them all tested, we will begin the formal process of publishing the changes locally, regionally and nationally, in the form of a Public Information Statement (PNS), as well as changes to Routine Weekly Test verbiage and transmitter coverage maps/station listings etc. at the national NWR web page.

If you here of any problems with this testing, or, if you are aware of other similar issues with overlapping coverage or reception problems, please feel free to let me know, and we will take a look at it.

Tags: NOAA Weatheradio, Severe Weather

Category: Alabama's Weather