Four Favorite Free Internet Weather Resources

Ever since I was just a young boy, I have always been fascinated with the weather. A few heavy storms influenced me when I was in grade school, so I wanted more detailed information. My first resource was a NOAA weather radio I got in 1976 or so. It was the state of the art for a grade-school kid, and I knew when there was a storm warning before it was even broadcast on TV or radio. I thought it was just awesome. At that time there were 3 designated channels, today there are 7, and more places are covered than ever before. Deluxe models of weather radios can be programmed to signal an alert for any county you live in should you be placed under a watch or warning.

Technology has come a long way with weather radios, but now we have the Internet. If I am following a storm in my area or a Hurricane over a thousand miles away, I have resources at my fingertips I never dreamed of as a kid.

The official web site for the government NOAA National weather service have a very comprehensive list of links to get you to the information you want to see. If you know your zip code you can pull up the latest official weather forecast and observations at weather stations. You can also follow storms tracked by the Storm Prediction Center, and the National Hurricane Center.

I also watched the Weather Channel when it first appeared on cable TV in my area. I loved the radar shots and the personalities who give you the information. They have a web site that has a great deal of free content. If the ads annoy you, for just $24.99 a year you can get weather.com GOLD and not have to bother with the advertising.

I also like the AccuWeather web site. The have unique graphics, and they do their own forecasting, so their prediction may not always match the other sites. They have more than adequate free content for most people. They also have a number of premium services that get into serious detail that you cannot get anywhere else.

One site I also enjoy is the Weather Underground. Content is free, and you can for just $10.00 a year eliminate the advertising, which is not excessive. The Weather Underground is based in Ann Arbor Michigan, and one of the thing that I like is the numerous small weather stations you can get observations from. They also have a Hurricane Expert that has a great blog, Dr. Jeff Masters. He can tell you where the next hot spots of tropical development are going to occur.

So there you have my four favorite Internet sources of weather information. We have come a long way since the weather radio was the only source.

http://www.wunderground.com/ Weather Underground

http://www.accuweather.com/ AccuWeather

http://www.nws.noaa.gov/ Main Site National Weather Service

http://www.spc.noaa.gov/ Storm Prediction Center

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ National Hurricane Center

http://www.weather.com/ Weather Channel