(Oct. 30, 2007) -- More than 900 volunteer weather observers in Tennessee will be honored during November for dedicated service to their fellow citizens, the state and the NOAA-National Weather Service. Governor Phil Bredesen officially proclaimed November as Tennessee Volunteer Weather Observer Month.
The proclamation recognizes two categories of weather observers: the historic National Weather Service's Cooperative Observer Network and the rapidly expanding Community Collaborative, Rain, Hail and Snow Network, commonly known as CoCoRaHS.
Currently, Tennessee has 193 cooperative observer stations which provide National Weather Service forecast offices with daily reports on temperature, precipitation and other weather factors such as snow depth, river levels and soil temperature. The Tennessee cooperative observer network dates back to the 1850s and is part of a national network that consists of more than 11,700 observers.
The state's CoCoRaHS program boasts 745 observers. They are part of a unique, non-profit, community-based, network of volunteers working to measure and map precipitation. This popular program originated with the Colorado Climate Center at the University of Colorado in 1998 and has since expanded to include approximately 12,000 volunteers in 23 states.
In his proclamation, Governor Bredesen attributes the network's rapid growth to heightened weather awareness. He notes, "Increased understanding of natural disasters, paired with the ability to hear and see such events through various media, has resulted in an unprecedented interest in weather across the Volunteer State."
"This year's extreme drought conditions and recent heavy rainfall affecting Tennessee and neighboring southeast states also serves to underscore the value of our volunteer observer reports," said Ralph Troutman, observing program leader for the National Weather Service forecast office in Nashville.
