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From the Editor
By Dave Johnson, N0KBD
Vice-Chair, Newsletter Editor, Website Committee
Winter is a busy time for Metro Skywarn. All of our
working committees meet to debrief the previous season, and prepare for the next Spring.
Some of the fruits of those efforts appear in this Newsletter.
Theresa Caspers, our Board Chair
and Training Coordinator previews
(on the right) the new training season starting THIS MONTH! She
also reviews the results of surveys
of spotters from last year.
Ryan Kelzenberg, Board Member and Co-chair of Operations Committee, and member of the Webmaster Committee reviews (page 2) MSW’s Social Media presence
and how you can participate.
Andrew LaVenture, Director of Bloomington Communications Group updates us (page 5) on Bloomington Net Control Station and Operators activities last year and
preparations for the next year.
David Riviera our Webmaster reports on the incredible
progress he’s made on the website, transforming it into
another social media arm of MSW.
Then there are a couple reprints from the NWS that
seemed useful (page 5 and 9). The first is about the new
“Enhanced Risk” for severe weather, a step between
“Slight Risk” and “Moderate Risk”. The other is a planning docu ment about the national Skywarn program.
You may have noticed our operation use of our email
lists Mswalert and Mswinfo over the past year. Mswalert
continues be used for short notifications about upcoming
and on-going MSW severe weather activations. Mswinfo
has changed to include more detailed. and extended notice of severe weather events upcoming. It is still used
for announcements for MSW. So if you want more notice
and detail in your MSW alerts, subscribe to Mswinfo
Continued on page 4
Safety First:
Spot from Home After Dark
Class Schedule starts on page 3.
Remember the official schedule is on the
Website. Check there first before planning
to attend in case there has been a change!
From the Chair:
By Theresa Caspers, Board Chair
and Training Coordinator
Although 2013 was a slow year
for weather and tornadoes (15
total), we trained 629 people in
2014! This was an 8% increase
from 2013. Our spring came slightly earlier than
in 2013, so it may have had an effect on the
number of people who came to class.
For 2015, we will have a new presentation and
video set! (Thanks to the National Weather Service and John Wetter for putting together the
materials!) The trainers will be going to the Train
the Trainer Training set up by the National
Weather Service in early February. We anticipate
there will be another rise in the number of spotters in our classes. The Twin Cities did not see
much in the way of severe weather, but there
were 23 tornadoes in Minnesota in 2014. The Climate Prediction Center’s 3 month outlook for
temperatures suggest that we have equal
chances for above, normal and below normal
temperatures. (I’m sure we’d all be thrilled with a
normal spring!)
Lastly, I wanted to address some of the questions
and comments on your registration forms.
Q. When will you get online training?
Continued on page 6
POSITIONS AVAILABLE:
Net Operators - Metro Skywarn is looking for weather wise
Amateur Radio Operators in the Mpls/St.Paul area to take a
major role in Skywarn Nets. The Net Operation Center at the
National Weather Service Field Office in Chanhassen is looking for Amateur Radio Operators with flexible hours to work
during severe weather events in Central Minnesota and
Western Wisconsin. Contact KØMPX Coordinator John Wetter at 763-494-3874 or [email protected].
The Net Operations Center at the Maple Grove Fire Station
#2, sponsored by the Maple Grove Radio Club is looking for
Amateur Radio Operators with flexible hours to work during
severe weather events in the Metro Area. Contact Tim Arimond N0BYH at 952-593-9641.
MSW Spotter Trainers - We are looking for some new people to train spotters every Spring. We expect you will teach at
least 3 classes every spring. Experienced trainers and spotters are preferred. Ham Radio and/or weather training are
helpful. We will train and apprentice the right candidates.
Contact
Theresa
Caspers
KCØGWW
at
[email protected]
Committee Members - We need more active members participating in the operations of Metro Skywarn. Expectations
should not exceed more than two meetings a month and a
few hours working on the task at hand. The Board wishes to
form standing committees to work on: Newsletter, Spotter
Appreciation, Spotter Notification, Web page, Organization
Collaboration, Public Relations, Fund Raising, and Club Affiliation. To apply, please contact Theresa Caspers
KCØGWW at [email protected]
Metro Skywarn
Is Socially Active
Metro Skywarn Net Control Operators (NCO) to send alerts and
information to spotters using the
NSC Alert ™ interface. Messages
from the NCO’s are posted to
sites including; the MSW Webpage, the MSW Facebook Page,
MSW Twitter account, MSW Email
lists, and MSW Google + account.
The wide distribution of updates
and information allows spotters
to use their preferred notification methods to stay connected to MSW.
In additional to the official posts by MSW, there are
discussion boards on the MSW Website and a MSW Spotter Group on Facebook that allows spotters to interact
with each other and discuss topics of interest to the
skywarn community.
The variety of sites used by Metro Skywarn have been
included to assist spotters in making additional connections with MSW and the spotter community.
Metro Skywarn Website:
http://metroskywarn.org/
Metro Skywarn Twitter Account:
http://twitter.com/metroskywarn
Metro Skywarn Google+ Account:
http://plus.google.com/u/0/+MetroskywarnOrg/posts
Metro Skywarn Facebook Page:
http://www.facebook.com/metroskywarn
Metro Skywarn Facebook Group:
http://www.facebook.com/groups/
TwinCitiesMetroSkywarn
Metro Skywarn LinkedIn Account:
http://www.linkedin.com/company/2937856
by Ryan Kelzenberg, N0YFE - MSW Board Member
Metro Skywarn (MSW) uses several popular social media
sites to keep spotters informed and involved with the
organizations’ activities, activations, and events. This
past year has been a great year for expanding our social media presence and the ability to create posts in
Twitter, Face book, and Google+. David Riviera, the
MSW webmaster, created an interface that allows the
MSW Spotters who have any questions regarding the
social media accounts may contact the webmaster
through:
[email protected]
Metro Skywarn Board of Directors
Theresa Caspers
KCØGWW
Chair, Training Coordinator
[email protected]
Dave Johnson
NØKBD
Vice-chair , Newsletter Editor
[email protected]
David Gawboy
KCØTRZ
Secretary
[email protected]
Tim Arimond
NØBYH
Maple Grove NCO Representative
[email protected]
Sandra Johnson
KCØTSB
Treasurer
[email protected]
Howard Lund
KCØWNL
Ramsey Cty NCO Representative
[email protected]
Ryan Kelzenberg
NØYFE
At-large
[email protected]
Paul Johnson
NØCRC
At-large
[email protected]
Chris White
NØCJW
Bloomington NCO Representative
[email protected]
2
Metro Skywarn 2015 Schedule
Sat 2-28-15
10:30 AM 3:30 PM
Includes 1 hour break for lunch
(on your own)
Stillwater Amateur Radio Association
Stillwater Public Library
Margaret Rivers Room A and B - 3rd Floor
224 3rd Street North
Stillwater, MN 55082
Wed 3-4-15
6PM - 10PM
City of Minneapolis Office of Emergency Mgmt
Emergency Operations Training Facility
25 37th Ave NE 55082
Fridley, MN 55082
Thur 3-5-15
5:30 PM 9:30 PM
Ramsey County Emergency Mgmt
1st Floor Conference Room
90 W Plato Blvd
St. Paul, MN 55107
Sat 3-14-15
9:30AM - 1:30PM
Twin Cities FM Club
Ridgedale Public Library - RHR Room
12601 Ridgedale Dr Minnetonka, MN
(Behind Ridgedale Shopping Center)
Sat 3-14-15
12 PM 4 PM
Anoka County Emergency Mgmt
Blaine City Hall
10801 Town Square Dr.
Blaine, MN 55449
(Radisson Road and 109th Ave North)
Mon 3-16-15
6PM - 10PM
Radio City
2663 County Rd I
Mounds View, MN
Wed 3-18-15
6 PM – 10 PM
Carver County Gov Center
600 East 4th Street
Chaska, MN 55318
Sat 3-21-15
8 AM – 12 PM
Bloomington Emergency Communications
Bloomington Fire Station #1
10 West 95th St.
Bloomington, MN 55420
Sat 3-21-15
12 PM - 4 PM
Ramsey County Emergency Mgmt
1st Floor Conference Room
90 W Plato Blvd
St. Paul, MN 55107
Continued on page 4
Walk ins welcome - PreRegistration Preferred (See Website schedule for link.)
For facility information only contact:
Bob Jensen
612-802-2269
bobajensen@ comcast.net
REGISTRATION REQUIRED
For facility information only contact:
[email protected]
Walk ins welcome
Pre-registration Preferred (See
Website schedule for link.)
Facility information only contact:
Karma Kumlin-Diers
Ramsey County EM
[email protected]
651-266-1013
Earl Jarosh
[email protected]
763-545-3275
Pre-registration recommended.
(See Website schedule for link.)
Walk-ins accommodated as space
permits.
Walk ins welcome
Pre-registration Preferred (See
Website schedule for link.)
For facility information only contact:
Dave Runkle
763 -784 -4384
[email protected]
REGISTRATION REQUIRED
seating for 15
Dan Fish
[email protected]
763-786-4475
Walk ins welcome
Pre-Registration Preferred (See
Website schedule for link.)
For facility information only contact:
Mark Jones
[email protected]
Walk ins welcome
Pre-Registration Preferred (See
Website schedule for link.)
For facility information only
contact: Andrew at
[email protected]
Walk ins welcome
Pre-registration Preferred (See
Website schedule for link.)
Facility information only contact:
Karma Kumlin-Diers
Ramsey County EM
[email protected]
651-266-1013
3
Metro Skywarn 2015 Schedule
Continued from page 3
Thurs 4-9-15
6 PM-10 PM
Tues 4-14-15
6pm – 10pm
Sat 4-18-15
9 AM – 1 PM
Sat 4-25-15 8:30 AM 12:30 PM
Richfield CERT and Richfield Amateur Radio Club
Richfield Municipal Center
Bartholomew Room
6700 Portland Avenue
Richfield, MN
Walk ins welcome
Pre-Registration Preferred (See
Website schedule for link.)
For facility information only
contact: Charlie at [email protected]
Maple Grove Radio Club
Walk ins welcome
Maple Grove Fire Station #2
Pre-registration Preferred (See
13450 Maple Knoll Way
Website schedule for link.)
Maple Grove, MN 55369
For facility information only
contact: Dave [email protected]
Maplewood Fire Station 2
Walk ins welcome
1900 Clarence St.
Pre-Registration Preferred (See
Maplewood, MN 55109
Website schedule for link.)
For facility information only
contact: Howard [email protected]
North Hennepin Community College - Center for Busi- REGISTRATION REQUIRED
763-424-0880
ness and Technology Building - Room CBT 181A
$ 10 Fee
7411 85th Ave N.
(REGISTRATION REQUIRED Brooklyn Park, MN
class subject to cancellation if too
few register)
Sat 4-25-15
9 AM – 1 PM
SEMARC
Zion Lutheran Church
8500 Hillside Trail S
Cottage Grove, MN 55016
REGISTRATION REQUIRED
Facility information:
Contact Dave at 612-250-3417 or
[email protected]
Thurs 5-7-15
6 PM – 10 PM
Hennepin County Emergency Management
Hennepin County Public Works - EOC Room
1600 Prairie Dr.
Medina, MN 55340
Sat 5-9-15
12PM – 4PM
Anoka County Emergency Mgmt
Blaine City Hall
10801 Town Square Dr.
Blaine, MN 55449
(Radisson Road and 109th Ave North)
Sat 5-30-15
9 AM 1 PM
Ramsey County Public Works
Marsden Room
1425 Paul Kirkwold Dr.
Arden Hills, MN 55112
(Near Hamline and Hwy 96)
Walk ins welcome
Pre-Registration Preferred (See
Website schedule for link.)
For facility information only
contact: Mike Ostlund [email protected]
Walk ins welcome
Pre-registration Preferred (See
Website schedule for link.)
For facility information only contact:
Dave Runkle
763 -784 -4384
[email protected]
Walk ins welcome
Pre-Registration Preferred (See
Website schedule for link.)
For facility information only
contact: Howard [email protected]
From the Editor
Continued from page 1
So if you want more notice and detail in your MSW
alerts, subscribe to Mswinfo too.
Have you liked the annual Minnesota Skywarn Conference? This year it has a different name, the Minnesota
Severe Storms Conference, which will be held on April
11. Details are available on the new website:
www.mnssc.org.
Metro Skywarn Social Media
Website
http://metroskywarn.org/
Twitter
http://twitter.com/metroskywarn
Google +
http://plus.google.com/u/0/+MetroskywarnOrg/posts
Facebook Page
http://www.facebook.com/metroskywarn
Facebook Group
http://www.facebook.com/groups/
TwinCitiesMetroSkywarn
Linked In
http://www.linkedin.com/company/2937856
Help with Social
Media
[email protected]
4
Another Change to SPC
Convective Outlooks
by John Ferree NWS Severe Storms Service Leader;
Greg Carbin SPC Warning Coordination Meteorologist
Published in Aware, December 2014, NOAA’s National
Weather Service
The Storm Prediction Center (SPC) introduced two
new categories in the Day 1-3 Outlooks in October (see
Weather-Ready Nation news story). Beginning December 16, the SPC began including a new category in the
SPC Day 4-8 Convective Outlook Graphics. In October, SPC added a new category, “Marginal,” to the Day
1-3 Outlooks to replace the “See Text” label on SPC
Figure 2: Day 4-8 Outlooks
Bloomington NCS Update
Andrew LaVenture, KC0RKH
Director, Bloomington Communications Group
Figure 1: Day 1-3 Outlooks
maps. A new “Enhanced” category was also added between the “Slight” and “Moderate” categories (See Figure 1). The under - lying probability of severe weather
depicted from these outlooks did not change. SPC’s
Day 4-8 outlooks had previously only outlined areas
where the probability of severe weather was 30 percent
or more on a given day, and labeled these areas with the
day (e.g. Day 6). On December 16, the SPC added a
separate graphic for each day in the Day 4 through 8
period. This facilitates the addition of a lower probability, 15 percent, to outline areas where organized severe
weather appears possible, but SPC is uncertain about
details such as storm formation, coverage or intensity.
These areas will be labeled 15% and 30% (see Figure 2).
SPC is adding this additional information to the outlooks to better depict risk in the Day 4-8 period, and to
provide better consistency between the map graphic
and corresponding text discussion. The change should
also better spotlight severe weather threat potential earlier in the forecast process. An instructional video can
be found at http://www.spc.noaa.gov/exper/dy48example/
.
Numerous changes and improvements have been made at the
Bloomington Communications
Group (BCG) since last year’s severe weather season! Most of the
developments are behind the
scenes but all will contribute to a
smoother experience for spotters’
calling-in reports this spring and
summer. The following is a recap
of some of the most notable updates.
This past fall, we replaced three ancient Windows XP
computers with four new laptops. Each laptop has a
second monitor display that allows our net controllers
to view the live radar feed while simultaneously logging
reports from spotters in the field! Our net controllers
will no longer have to switch between multiple tabs on
one computer screen. Along with the new computers
we also completed an upgrade to our radar software.
The latest version of GRLevel3 will give net controllers
the best picture of what is occurring in the Twin Cities
metro in near real-time.
2014 was also a big year for training. While the training
curriculum for our volunteer net control operators is
rigorous, it prepares them to handle routine and emergency traffic under the most demanding of circumstances. In addition to SkyWarn Spotter Training,
BCG net control operators also complete: AERO 1
(basic), AERO 2 (net control), Knowledge Center Incident Management software orientation, Minnesota ARMER 800Mhz courses, as well as FEMA ICS 100, 200,
Continued on page 6
5
Bloomington NCS Update
Continued from page 5
700, & 800.
As a RACES organization, BCG also partners with the
Bloomington Police, Fire, Health, and Emergency Management Departments. In 2014, BCG volunteers donated more than 2000 hours of their time at various
events and training sessions. Some of the events that
we support, in addition to SkyWarn, are: Summer
Fete / Independence Day Celebration, River Rendezvous, ARRL Field Day, National Night Out, Public
Health Communications Drills, and other public safety
events. If you are interested in volunteering for an active public safety oriented HAM group, and live or
From the Chair:
Continued from page 1
A. We use the National Weather Service’s presentation and video set, so at this time, there is
not an online version.
Q. I have difficulty getting into the repeaters.
What should I be doing?
A. Once the heavy rain and hail moves in, it will
have an effect on how well you get into the repeaters. Make sure you have a 2 meter radio with
a 5/8 wave antenna. You can also try to boost
your power. No hand held devices as they don’t
get into the repeaters very well!
Q. We’d like to have more social events so we
can meet other spotters.
A. This year, we will have two social events. The
first one was on January 17 when we had movie
day! We watched “Into the Storm”, had pizza and
popcorn. A good time was had by all! We will
once again have a picnic on May 16 (rain date
May 17). Please watch MSWInfo for details. If you
have any ideas for events or you work at a place
that could offer something, please let the board
know by going to MetroSkywarn.org > MetroSkywarn Information > Board of Directors >
Contact Board.
work in or near the city of Bloomington, visit
www.wc0aaa.org for more information.
Q. Please have Advanced Training Classes.
A. While we’d like to offer advanced classes, our
trainers are already putting in many hours with
the current class schedule and unfortunately we
cannot offer anything additional at this time. We
are always looking for instructors, so if you’d like
to try being one, email Theresa at
[email protected]. In the meantime,
there are other opportunities online and in person to learn more about the weather. The Minnesota Severe Storms Conference (formerly the MN
Skywarn Workshop) will be held April 11. The
University of Illinois has the WW2010 project
that has some information on it. You can also
learn from others at the National Skywarn Forum
(SkywarnForum.com). Google will also get you to
many other resources.
Communications Vehicle Deployment- Summer Fete
2014, BCG and Bloomington CERT.
Photo Credit: Brian Esmay, AD0MJ
Communications Vehicle Deployment- Bloomington
Fire Department Support, Fall 2014
Photo Credit: Wayne Snyder, KC0ZJB
Keep the comments and questions coming! We
hope to see you at training this year. Remember,
no matter if you are a Metro Skywarn Spotter or
report directly to the National Weather Service,
training is required every two years! See you under the clouds!
6
Website Update
by David Riviera K0DJR MSW Webmaster
The Website is one of the key
communication tools Metro Skywarn uses to "get the word out"
when weather approaches. The
Google email groups, NCS Alert
System, Facebook, Twitter, and
the Website are a closely networked system of notifications
and displays to help you determine the best course of action for
your spotting. We can only provide the tools and training... it is
up to you to make the best, safest decision based on the information you find.
From April 8, 2014 through December 17, 2014, we had 7,903
users, 20,037 sessions, and 37,912 page views.
The graph peaks on weather events.
The Current Weather page is by far the most popular page, especially during weather events. Next is the class schedule, followed
by the frequencies page, net status color code definitions, and the
coverage area map.
The Website has been updated! Along with a fresh, new look,
we've upgraded the back-end system that makes the site function.
The new software version is faster, meaner, and more secure. In
other words, we can do more with it now. It's here for your use, so
please sign up and take a look around. It is a benefit of being a
trained Metro Skywarn spotter. And it's free!
To have access to the site, you need to be a trained Metro Skywarn spotter with a MSW spotter ID (and preferably an Amateur
Radio call sign). Your information is pre-entered into the Website
database after you complete your class. All you need to do is email
us a preferred TEMPORARY 6-character password to
[email protected] with your name, call sign, spotter
ID, and email address. Once registered and signed in, you can
update your information-on-file with Metro Skywarn.
Note: With our December 2014 upgrade, all site passwords were
reset. Try to recover your password first using the "Forgot Login?"
link under the login box, using your email address and username.
You can use "Forgot Login?" to find out your username, too. If your
email address is not in the system, follow these instructions:
If you continue to have problems, email us at
[email protected] with the following information:
Your Email Address (each user requires a unique email address)
Your Metro Skywarn ID #
Your Call Sign (if you have one)
Your information is safe. We have implemented SSL (https) on the
site in some areas. Your privacy is important. Your address and
contact information is private, used only by Metro Skywarn, Net
Control Stations, and the National Weather Service to follow up
with weather reports. The only information shown to other spotters
is your name and call
Date
Sessions
sign. More enhancements are on the way! May 8, 2014
912
This is an exclusive
June 16, 2014
473
June 28, 2014
334
July 7, 2014
309
July 21, 2014
273
August 24, 2014
280
August 31, 2014
398
September 3, 2014
380
November 10, 2014
129
"club" for Metro Skywarn Spotters.
The old Forum has been replaced by Groups. These new groups
are still be developed, but they should be much more interactive
than the old Forum. Many new features are available to us that are
still being tested.
I hope you like the new site. If you have any ideas, or want to stay
up-to-date on site development, visit the Metro Skywarn Facebook
Group, Facebook Page, or email me at [email protected].
Saturday, April 11, 2015
University of St. Thomas, Minneapolis Campus
Pre-registration Region (will be a deadline)
www.mnssc.org
7
2014 Severe Weather Season
By Todd Krause, Warning Coordination Meteorologist, Chanahassen
The 2014 severe weather season was very quiet across the metro. The most notable
event was the flash flooding of June 19, which was especially damaging in portions
of Scott County. The graphic shows rainfall totals for the seven days ending at 3 pm
on June 20; note the metro maximum of eight inches for the week in Carver and
Scott Counties. Four to six inches of this fell on June 19 near Blakely and Belle
Plaine to Eden Prairie. The area around Blakely suffered major damage.
Minnesota saw 23 tornadoes in 2014, 16 of which were EF-0. Only three of them reached EF-2
strength, all in northwest Minnesota. In the metro, there was a two mile long EF-0 tornado on July 7
that crossed from far southeastern Washington County into Pierce County Wisconsin, with little damage. The events with the most metro Severe Thunderstorm Warnings (five) were late May 7 into early
May 8 and again on July 7. The largest reported hail was golf ball size on May 7 in Lakeville, and on
July 7 when a lengthy swath hit Shakopee to Rosemount. None of the metro thunderstorms were believed to have had winds greater than 65 mph.
The NWS thanks all spotters for attending classes, watching storms at all sorts of hours, and making
reports, which we relay to the public, media, and public safety officials. Your help is greatly appreciated!
8
Here's a high-res capture of the poster recently presented by NWS Warning Coordination Meteorologists Tanja Fransen and
Rick Smith attending the 95th American Meteorological Society (AMS) Annual Meeting being held in Phoenix, AZ this
week. — Skywarn Facebook page.