The WX5FWD SKYWARN™ team are volunteer radio operator liaisons for the Fort Worth National Weather Service (NWS) North Texas SKYWARN™ Spotters. During SKYWARN events, you are reporting information to our team and the NWS warning forecasters. Three goals of a storm spotter are to safely observe, identify and report conditions.

Weather spotters provide what's called "ground truth" to the National Weather Service and emergency weather management. Spotters are needed because, while radar is very good at helping the National Weather Service see what's going on in the upper atmosphere, it's unable to detect what's actually happening on the ground because of the curvature of the Earth. Knowing the "ground truth" about a weather event from the location can be the deciding factor to issue a warning.

Voice-over-IP (VoIP) Test and Practice Net for Weather Spotters

Submitted by wd5m on Tue, 2023-03-28 09:29
Concern

Do you use EchoLink, IRLP or Allstar? You are invited to our first Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) practice and training net.

The purpose of this net is to test and practice connecting to the NWS Radio Desk Team VoIP servers. This will help you be prepared to send severe weather reports using our VoIP systems. One of our team members will be the net control operator. We may provide additional helpful spotter information during the net.

  • When: 6 PM CDT, Sunday April 2, 2023
  • Where:
    • EchoLink Conference: *WX5FWD* 372418
    • Allstar Hub Node: 516220
    • IRLP Experimental Node: 0010
  • Duration: 30 minutes
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How to Submit A Report to NWS Fort Worth, What We Need to Know, What to Report (Our Wishlist)

Submitted by wd5m on Mon, 2023-03-20 11:48

The NWS Spotter Training program provides the basic information spotters need to safely observe and report severe weather information. Below are links any spotter can reference.

NWS Fort Worth Spotter Cheat Sheet
www.weather.gov/media/fwd/skywarn/Spotter%20Handout%202022.pdf

How to Submit A Report to NWS Fort Worth, What We Need to Know, What to Report (Our Wishlist)

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2023 Spotter Training Schedule

Submitted by wd5m on Sat, 2023-02-18 15:46
We Need You!

The North Texas SKYWARN™ Spotter Training Schedule for 2023 is being updated. Be sure to check the schedule often for updates and additions.

  • Spotters are an integral part to keeping our communities safe
  • Your report will be visible to both EM and media partners, not just NWS
  • Timely and accurate reports help us make more informed warning decisions for those downstream of your location

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NWS Special Event 2022 SKYWARN® Recognition Day

Submitted by wd5m on Mon, 2022-11-28 12:50
NWS Special EventNWS Special Event

2022 SKYWARN® Recognition Day

Fort Worth NWS CWA The 2022 SKYWARN® Recognition Day event is from Friday evening, December 2nd 18:00 (6PM) CST until Saturday December 3rd 18:00 (6PM) CST. Or in UTC time December 3, 2022, from 00:00 to 24:00 UTC.

SKYWARN™ Recognition Day (SRD) was developed in 1999 by the National Weather Service and the American Radio Relay League. It celebrates the contributions that SKYWARN™ volunteers make to the NWS mission, the protection of life and property.

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Information for Storm Spotters

Submitted by wd5m on Sun, 2021-12-19 20:16
SKYWARN Storm Spotters should attend the annual training sessions provided by National Weather Service (NWS). Those sessions give spotters the basic information they need to safely and effectively provide severe weather reports. You are considered a trained spotter by attending a training session. Attending annually also gives you updates on the latest training information. Safety is the primary concern of the training. If you missed the scheduled training sessions, there is spotter reference material and training on the Internet. This material is useful to the trained spotter as well.
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