National Weather Service - NWS

What National Weather Service - NWS does

The National Weather Service (NWS) is the U.S. federal government's authoritative weather, water, and climate forecasting agency, operating as a component of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) within the Department of Commerce. Founded in 1870 (with the modern NWS established in 1970 under NOAA), the agency is headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland and operates a nationwide infrastructure of 122 local Weather Forecast Offices, a 159-radar NEXRAD Doppler network, satellite ingestion systems, and upper-air observation programs. Its product portfolio spans public forecasts, severe weather warnings (tornado, severe thunderstorm, flash flood, hurricane), aviation, marine, fire weather, and hydrologic services, delivered through weather.gov, NOAA Weather Radio, Wireless Emergency Alerts, and IDSS engagements with emergency managers.

The agency's underlying technology stack centers on AWIPS (Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System) — the mission-critical forecaster workstation platform currently being replaced by NWS HIVE via a 2026 contract with Accenture Federal Services, which embeds AI, cloud, and DevSecOps capabilities. Specialized ML capability has emerged through TACLS, a NASA JPL/UC San Diego/NWS collaboration that uses satellite data for near real-time flash flood prediction (93% simulation capture rate, 15-minute latency). Commercial partnerships — notably with Climavision for gap-filling radar integration reaching 30+ WFOs — extend observational coverage to ~130 million Americans previously underserved by NEXRAD.

NWS generates no commercial revenue. It is funded entirely through annual federal appropriations ($1.351B for FY2026) and provides all services free of charge to the public, emergency managers, aviation, agriculture, and marine stakeholders. Its customer base spans every U.S. resident plus institutional users across federal, state, tribal, and local government. The agency is currently navigating a contracted workforce (~15% reduction since late 2024, partially offset by 200+ rehirings; average tenure down from 25 to 15 years) while pursuing core platform modernization and AI capability expansion.

Name

National Weather Service - NWS

Legal name

National Weather Service

Website

https://weather.gov

Company type

Public

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

The National Weather Service (NWS) is a U.S. federal agency under NOAA providing free weather, water, and climate forecasts and warnings to the public, emergency managers, aviation, agriculture, and marine users through 122 Weather Forecast Offices, the 159-radar NEXRAD network, and the AWIPS/NWS HIVE forecasting platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Weather Forecasting and Warning Services

NAICS

Radio and Television Broadcasting Stations (5161), Radio Broadcasting Stations (516110), Radio Broadcasting Stations (51611), Television Broadcasting Stations (51612)

SIC

Radio Broadcasting Stations (4832), Television Broadcasting Stations (4833)

akta.pro primary industry

Emergency Communications, Alerting & Public Warning Systems (HLAJAGAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Early Warning, Event Monitoring & Forecasting (Extreme Weather Alerts, Nowcasting) (EUABALAJ), Traffic/Weather/Information Radio Networks (MPABABAI), 24/7 Snow & Ice Response / Seasonal Contract Services (HSAIAIAJ)

Keywords

• Weather forecasting services
• Severe weather warnings
• Meteorological data
• Climate monitoring
• Public weather alerts

Headquarters

HQ city

Silver Spring

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations

Revenue model

1. Federal Appropriations: NWS is a component of NOAA under the U.S. Department of Commerce. The agency is funded through annual federal appropriations from Congress. As a government agency, NWS does not generate revenue from sales but provides services free to the public as a matter of national safety and public welfare.
2. FY2026 Congressional Funding: $1.351 billion allocated to the National Weather Service in the Commerce, Justice, Science appropriations package for fiscal year 2026, providing operational funding for staff, technology infrastructure, and forecasting operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

NWS provides weather, water, and climate data, forecasts, and warnings through a nationwide network of 122 local Weather Forecast Offices supported by NEXRAD radar, NOAA Weather Radio, satellite integration, and the AWIPS forecasting platform. Services are delivered free of charge to the public, emergency managers, aviation, agriculture, and marine interests for the protection of life and property.

Product overview

NWS provides a comprehensive suite of weather forecasting and warning products through its network of 122 local Weather Forecast Offices, supported by national centers and the AWIPS platform. The core offerings include the NDFD (National Digital Forecast Database) for standardized forecasts, NEXRAD radar network for precipitation detection, NOAA Weather Radio for 24/7 broadcasts, and probabilistic snowfall products. Localized services include Severe Weather Warnings (tornadoes, thunderstorms, flash floods), Fire Weather Services, Aviation Weather, and Marine Weather. Community resilience programs include SKYWARN storm spotters, StormReady, and TsunamiReady. The system supports multiple data formats including XML/CAP alerts, KML geographic data, and graphical forecast maps across multiple sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• National Digital Forecast Database (NDFD) Digital forecast data system providing standardized weather forecasts across multiple elements including temperature, precipitation, wind, and hazards for the contiguous United States.
• NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) Nationwide network of radio stations broadcasting continuous weather information directly from the nearest NWS forecast office, providing life-saving warnings and forecasts 24 hours a day.

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

AI capability4 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NASA Jet Propulsion LaboratorycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 June 2026NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory collaborated with NWS and UC San Diego to develop TACLS, a machine learning system that analyzes satellite data to predict flash floods in near real-time. In simulations, TACLS successfully captured 93% of issued flash flood warnings and can produce forecasts in as little as 15 minutes. NWS meteorologists are working to incorporate TACLS into existing systems for Southern California forecasting, with software and training data to be released as open-source.
• University of VermontminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 May 2026University of Vermont opened an extreme weather monitoring station in Lyndonville, the first of approximately 20 planned stations across the state designed to fill gaps in current radar coverage and improve flood and severe weather predictions. The 10-meter tower will provide localized data to NWS and Vermont state emergency officials, with soil moisture measurements expected to significantly enhance flood prediction lead times.
• Accenture Federal ServicescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 March 2026Accenture Federal Services was awarded a contract by NOAA to modernize and operate NWS HIVE (Hazardous Information and Visualization Environment), the National Weather Service's mission-critical forecasting system. AFS will bring AI, cloud, DevSecOps, platform engineering, and operational resilience expertise to build a modern system with enhanced performance, scalability, and security, replacing the legacy AWIPS system.
• Disaster Imaging, Inc.minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 January 2026NOAA's NWS signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with Disaster Imaging, Inc. to explore using drones for post-storm damage assessments following severe weather events. The partnership focuses on rapid deployment of uncrewed aircraft systems to collect and distribute aerial imagery of tornado damage to improve damage assessments and advance research.
• ClimavisioncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 January 2026Louisville-based weather radar company Climavision has integrated 10 of its 29 radar systems with NWS, enabling its technology to feed directly into NWS forecasting operations. The partnership addresses gaps in aging legacy radar infrastructure, demonstrated when Climavision's radar provided dramatically clearer imaging of the EF4 tornado that struck Somerset and London, Kentucky. Climavision plans to expand to 42 radar systems by end of 2026.
• ClimavisioncoreTechnology or Integration · 7 January 2026Climavision's proprietary gap-filling radar network has been integrated into NWS AWIPS II software, enabling forecasters to access commercial radar data alongside NEXRAD data. With 29 radars installed to fill coverage gaps affecting nearly 130 million Americans, the partnership addresses aging legacy radar infrastructure. Integration was handled by KBR and Synoptic Data PBC through NOAA's National Mesonet Program, with pilot program expanding to over 30 Weather Forecast Offices.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• DTN: A private provider of weather, climate, and agricultural intelligence to industries including aviation, agriculture, energy, and logistics. Comparable in producing decision-support weather services and operating as an alternative/complementary source to NWS for commercial users.
• The Weather Company (IBM): A leading private-sector provider of weather data, forecasts, and analytics to consumers, media, and enterprises. Comparable in producing and distributing weather information at scale, but as a commercial entity complementing rather than replacing NWS.
• AccuWeather: A major private weather forecasting and media company that distributes forecasts and warnings to consumers and enterprises. Comparable in providing public-facing weather products and serving as a downstream redistributor of NWS-issued warnings.
• European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF): An intergovernmental organization producing global numerical weather predictions used by NWS and other national services. Comparable in producing authoritative weather model data and serving as a backbone infrastructure provider to national meteorological agencies.

Direct peers

• Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA): Japan's national meteorological agency, providing public weather forecasts, severe weather warnings (typhoons, earthquakes, tsunamis), and climate monitoring. Similar authoritative role and integration with emergency alerting systems.
• UK Met Office: The UK's national meteorological service, operating as a government agency providing weather and climate forecasts, severe weather warnings, and supporting emergency response. Functionally analogous to NWS as a national-scale public weather authority with research, forecasting, and warning mandates.
• Environment and Climate Change Canada (Meteorological Service of Canada): Canada's national weather service within Environment and Climate Change Canada, providing public forecasts, warnings, and climate services. Comparable mandate, infrastructure footprint (forecast offices, radar network), and government-funded operating model.
• Australian Bureau of Meteorology: Australia's national weather, climate, and water agency, providing public forecasts, severe weather warnings, and decision-support services to emergency managers. Operates a comparable radar and forecast office network and is a direct government-agency analog.
• Météo-France: France's national meteorological service providing public weather forecasts, warnings, and climate services. Operates radar networks and forecast offices under a government mandate analogous to NWS, including aviation and marine weather services.
• Deutsche Wetterdienst (DWD): Germany's national meteorological service providing public weather forecasts, severe weather warnings, and aviation/marine services. Operates a comparable nationwide network of forecast offices and radar infrastructure.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/nws
• YouTubeyoutube.com/usweathergov
• Facebookfacebook.com/NWSStLouis
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/noaa-nws

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about National Weather Service - NWS