National Weather Service Lincoln, Illinois
Federal Government of the United States | |
| Headquarters | 1362 State Route 10, Lincoln, IL 62656 40°9′6.2″N 89°20′18.2″W / 40.151722°N 89.338389°W |
|---|---|
| Employees | 22 |
| Agency executives |
|
| Parent agency | National Weather Service |
National Weather Service Lincoln, Illinois also known as National Weather Service Central Illinois is a weather forecast office responsible for monitoring weather conditions for 35 counties in
WSR-88D (NEXRAD) radar system, and Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (AWIPS) that greatly improve forecasting in the region. Lincoln is in charge of weather forecasts, warnings and local statements as well as aviation
weather.
History
Early history (1879–1930)
On July 1, 1879, the
U.S. Weather Bureau was founded and the equipment in Springfield was transferred from the Signal Service to the Weather Bureau.[2][3][4] In 1898 Springfield became the site of a new weather station that used kites to measure data in the atmosphere using tethered instruments.[2][5] In 1905 Peoria became the site of a new U.S. Weather Bureau, constructed at the cost of $7,969 the station measured temperatures, wind speeds, precipitation, snowfall, and barometric pressure.[2][6][7] A year later at the Peoria Station a telegraph was installed to help better transmit weather data and observations.[2] In Springfield the Weather Bureau was officially moved from its original location to a new building at 7th and Monroe.[2] In 1928 the Springfield Weather Bureau moved temporarily to the Abe Lincoln Hotel and the old office was subsequently destroyed for construction of a new federal courthouse.[2] Finally in 1930 the Springfield office was moved to its new location at the Springfield federal building.[2]
Aviation Weather Stations (1931–1954)
In 1931 the Peoria Weather Bureau began 24-hour operations, and in the following years the office began direct radio broadcasts, through local radio station
Peoria Municipal Airport, initial observations included temperature, wind and rain readings.[7] Only a couple of months later another WBAS station was opened at a small airport in Springfield.[2][8] In 1943 weather bureau operations at the original Peoria office merged with the airport station and in 1944 the original station closed permanently.[7] In 1947 the airport weather station in Springfield was moved to the new Lincoln Capital Airport.[2] In 1954 the Springfield Weather Bureau was closed and the airport station picked up the responsibilities of the old office.[2]
Introduction of Radars (1955–1992)
In 1955 parts of Central and Western Illinois became covered by the new weather radar
Automated Surface Observing Systems (ASOS) were installed at both the Peoria and Springfield airports.[2]
National Weather Service Lincoln (1993–)
In 1993 construction began on a new NWS Weather Forecast Office at the
WSR-88D radar system in Lincoln.[2][9] The first five meteorologists reported to the Lincoln location, but forecasting responsibilities remained at the Peoria and Springfield offices.[2] By September 1995 the Lincoln office began full-time operations and picked up the counties from the Peoria and Springfield offices as well as a few from the Saint Louis and Evansville offices.[10] On October 1, 1995 the National Weather Service offices in Peoria and Springfield were officially closed after serving Central Illinois since the early 20th century.[2][10]
In 1996 the WSR-88D radar was completed and joins a network of other "NEXRAD" radars throughout the country, while the WSR-74C in Springfield was officially decommissioned.[2] In 1998 an Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (AWIPS) is installed at the office and helps forecasters make more accurate weather forecasts in the region.[2][11] By the early 21st century the weather radio network in the region was greatly expanding and Lincoln could transmit warnings and general forecasts via such stations.[2]
Operations
Lincoln is equipped with a
weather spotters and forecasters.[13]
Area of Responsibility
The National Weather Service Central Illinois is in charge of weather forecasts, warnings and local statements for 35 counties in
Significant events
In June 1957
May 1995 Tornado Outbreak Sequence passed within two miles of the new office.[2] During the North American blizzard of 1999 several Lincoln forecasters were forced to spend 1–2 consecutive days at the office when their replacements could not get to them.[2] Two violent tornadoes have occurred during the office's period of operation, the Roanoke, Illinois F4 tornado of July 13, 2004, and the Washington, IL EF4 during the tornado outbreak of November 17, 2013.[16][17]
NOAA Weather Radio
National Weather Service Lincoln, Illinois forecast office provides programming for nine NOAA Weather Radio stations in Illinois.[18]
| City of license | Call sign | Frequency ( MHz ) |
Power | Counties served (in Illinois unless otherwise noted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bloomington | KZZ65 | 162.525 MHz | 300 watts | |
| Champaign | WXJ76 | 162.550 MHz | 1,000 watts | |
| Galesburg | KZZ66 | 162.400 MHz | 300 watts | Henry, Knox, Mercer, Warren |
| Jacksonville | WXM90 | 162.525 MHz | 300 watts | Brown, Calhoun, Cass, Greene, Morgan, Pike, Scott |
| Newton | KXI48 | 162.450 MHz | 1,000 watts | Clark, Clay, Crawford, Cumberland, Edwards, Effingham, Jasper, Lawrence, Richland, Wayne |
| Paris | KXI47 | 162.525 MHz | 300 watts | Clark, Coles, Douglas, Edgar, Vigo County, Indiana |
| Peoria | WXJ71 | 162.475 MHz | 1,000 watts | Fulton, Knox, Marshall, Mason, Peoria, Putnam, Stark, Tazewell, Woodford |
| Shelbyville | KXI46 | 162.500 MHz | 300 watts | Christian, Effingham, Fayette, Moultrie, Shelby |
| Springfield | WXJ75 | 162.400 MHz | 1,000 watts |
References
- ^ "About Our Office". National Weather Service, Lincoln IL. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah "History of Federal Weather Services in Central Illinois". National Weather Service, Lincoln IL. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
- ^ a b Report of the Chief of the Weather Bureau. United States. Weather Bureau. 1899. p. 53.
- ^ The World almanac & book of facts. The World almanac & book of facts. 1907. p. 138.
- ^ The Dublin Review. Early British periodicals. University of California: Burns and Oates. 1901. p. 138.
- ^ Report of the Chief of the Weather Bureau. United States. Weather Bureau. 1912. p. 38.
- ^ ISBN 0-7385-5469-3.
- ISBN 0-8093-2336-2.
- ^ "Radar planned for Lincoln working well". The Pantagraph. June 16, 1992. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
- ^ a b Bakke, Dave (March 29, 2009). "Lincoln office stays on top of the weather". The State Journal-Register. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
- ^ "List of WFO/RFC IDs". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Archived from the original on 2009-06-22. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
- ^ a b "Operations of the Lincoln National Weather Service 4". National Weather Service Central Illinois. Retrieved 17 April 2010.
- ^ "Operations of the Lincoln National Weather Service" (PDF). National Weather Service Central Illinois. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
- ^ a b Huff, F. A.; R. G. Semonin; S. A. Changnon Jr; D. M. A. Jones (1958). "Hydrometeorlogical Analysis Of Severe Rainstorms in Illinois" (PDF). Illinois State Water Survey. State of Illinois. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-20. Retrieved 2010-04-24.
- ^ "Event Summaries". National Weather Service Central Illinois. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
- ^ "The Roanoke F4 Tornado of July 13, 2004". NOAA, National Weather Service, Lincoln IL. Retrieved 21 Aug 2016.
- ^ "Historic Tornado Outbreak of November 17, 2013". NOAA, National Weather Service, Lincoln IL. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
- ^ NOAA Weather Radio All-Hazards: Central Illinois, NOAA. Retrieved July 31, 2018.
External links