NHC/TPC Education and Outreach

The Tropical Prediction Center-National Hurricane Center conducts a practical program of education and outreach on hazardous tropical weather for the public, educators, students, scientists, businesses, and government agencies. Increased awareness of hazardous tropical weather and its potential impacts are vital to the public and those emergency managers charged with safeguarding lives and property. TPC-NHC fulfills this responsibility through direct contact with these groups; formal and informal training; increased data availability; dissemination of scientific and other publications and feedback to effectively adapt to evolving needs.

Classes and Workshops

• Introduction to Hurricane Preparedness
• WMO RA-IV Workshop on Hurricane Forecasting and Warning

Introduction to Hurricane Preparedness

Introduction to Hurricane Preparedness (2004) is jointly sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service and the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency. The course targets local and state personnel responsible for hurricane mitigation and response. Course topics include: hurricane meteorology; hurricane hazards and hurricane planning activities. Three training cycles are offered annually to emergency managers from the Gulf coastal region (Texas to Florida) and East coastal states (Florida to Virginia and Maryland to Maine). FEMA also conducts an annual two-day workshop at the privately sponsored National Hurricane Conference. The workshop shares the same general goals, objectives and teaching staff as the Introduction to Hurricane Preparedness course.

Class picture of FEMA training 11-16 Jan 2004 (Click for full-size image)

Class picture of FEMA training 26-30 Jan 2004 (Click for full-size image)

Class picture of FEMA training 2-6 Feb 2004 (Click for full-size image)

World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
Regional Association IV (RA-IV)
Workshop on Hurricane Forecasting and Warning

The two-week workshop conducted by the Tropical Prediction Center-National Hurricane Center is an annual event sponsored by the WMO. Forecasters/meteorologists from RA-IV countries are familiarized and trained in state-of-the-art techniques for tropical cyclone prediction, warning, and public awareness. Training is accomplished through a combination of lectures and practical exercises, with considerable interaction between students and course instructors.

Class picture of WMO RA-IV 2004 Workshop on Hurricane Forecasting and Warning (Click for full-size image)

All nations gain from the training: students receive valuable training; and the TPC interacts with its counterparts outside of the U.S., in many cases meteorologists from countries with whom TPC must coordinate forecasts and warnings during the hurricane season. Quite often, storms which threaten Caribbean countries eventually become threats to the U.S. This year's visiting meteorologists are from: Costa Rica, Mexico, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Canada, British Caribbean territories, Dominican Republic, Bahamas, Guatemala, Dominica, Venezuela, Colombia, Nicaragua, Haiti, Panama, Honduras, Cuba, Belize and El Salvador.

WMO RA-IV 2004 Workshop on Hurricane Forecasting and Warning classroom session (Click for full-size image)

Meteorologists from the Caribbean region complete a practical exercise on the Dvorak technique during the 2004 World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Regional Association IV (RA-IV) Workshop on Hurricane Forecasting and Warning. (Click for full-size image)