About Skywarn - Radio Shack RPO-137 User Manual

About Skywarn

Skywarn is an organized group of trained weather
observers. A Skywarn group exists in virtually
every US county with a significant population.
During inclement weather, reports made by
Skywarn observers include information about:
• Pea-sized and larger hail
• Wind and wind gusts of 40 MPH and greater
• Heavy rainfall
• Lightning (cloud-to-cloud and especially
cloud-to-ground)
• Wall clouds seen in severe thunderstorms
(which spawn tornadoes)
• Severe lowering of a wall cloud
• Turbulence in a wall cloud
• Funnel clouds
• Tornadoes
• High water areas
• Downed power lines
• Other emergency conditions that affect life
or property
Listen to Skywarn to hear trained observers in
your vicinity call in official reports to a net control
station which relays those reports to NOAA and
other emergency agencies. Listen to NOAA for
weather alerts and warnings, watch box notices,
and weather forecasts.
Note: If you tune to a Skywarn frequency
when the Skywarn net is not active, you may
hear nothing, or you may hear amateur radio
operators talking on a local repeater system.