Light to moderate snow will continue into Saturday over the Great Lakes, Central Appalachians, and Northeast. This weekend into next week, a series of atmospheric rivers will bring gusty winds, periods of heavy rain, and mountain snow to northern California and the Pacific Northwest. Colder temperatures are in store for the weekend from the Great Lakes to East Coast. Read More >
The US National Weather Service "International Services and Communication Systems" (ISCS) activity is a collective group of message dissemination systems used to provide weather, water and climate information to segments of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) International community as described in WMO document No. 386 - Manual on the Global Telecommunication System. The ISCS systems provide service to WMO Regional Association IV (RA-IV) and are managed by the US National Weather Service (NWS) Dissemination Systems Branch (W/OPS17); they include:
- GTS Internet File Service (GIFS)
- GeoNetCast - Americas (GNC-A)
- Emergency Managers Weather Information Network (EMWIN)
ISCS systems are an integral part of the RA-IV Regional Meteorological Telecommunications Network (RMTN), which focuses on the timely collection and delivery of both time-critical and routine watches, warnings, observations and forecasts.
Additional telecommunication systems are identified as part of the RA-IV RMTN which supplement the capabilities of the ISCS systems for the exchange of messages. These other systems include:
- Secure Socket Layer Virtual Private Network (SSL VPN) / NWSTG FTP Ingest Server
- Email Data Input Service (EDIS)
- WAFS Internet File Service (WIFS) receive service [FAA/ICAO system]
GNC-A will operate as an alternate method to GIFS for RA-IV RMTN user to obtain GTS data products. If implemented, end users interested in receiving the GNC-A broadcast will need to purchase the receiver equipment and software for their site. A list of possible vendors for satellite equipment and installation will be provided in the future. The outcome of the NWS GNC-A investigation and the future implementation of this service is uncertain.
More information on GeoNetCast Americas can be found at https://www.geonetcastamericas.noaa.gov/.
| GeoNetCast - Americas Broadcast Product Baseline | |
|---|---|
| Sub Channels | Files |
| Alert | Alerts_120405.txt |
| WMO-WMC Washington | WMO-WMC-Washington_120405.txt |
The Global Telecommunications System (GTS) Internet File Service (GIFS) is provided by the United States National Weather Service (NWS) for World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Regional Association IV (RA-IV) Member States, and other WMO Regions that are adjacent to RA-IV, as a highly reliable Internet source of meteorological products. The purpose of GIFS is to provide access to WMO RA-IV related weather information in BUFR, GRIB, alpha-numeric text, and T4-FAX data types to facilitate Members' access to information needed for operational and some research activities between the United States and nations in the Caribbean, North America, and Central America. This service is available to all authorized WMO RA-IV Member States as well as other WMO Regions adjacent to RA-IV. The GIFS is the primary service for GTS data within RA-IV.
The NWS is planning a satellite based broadcast service for backup:
GIFS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
