Subcommittee Democrats Stress the Need for Reliable Weather and Climate Forecasting
(Washington, DC) – Today the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology’s Subcommittee on Energy and Environment held a hearing to examine how the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) develops, evaluates, and executes plans to deliver the best and most cost effective data necessary for severe weather prediction and other observational needs. Two panels of witnesses testified at the hearing. The first panel included witnesses from the three most relevant offices within NOAA responsible for weather and satellite systems and observations: the National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Services (NESDIS); the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR); and the National Weather Service (NWS). The second panel included witnesses representing satellite and ground observation commercial providers and researchers.
Members and witnesses discussed how NOAA’s larger satellite programs - the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) and the Polar Operational Environmental Satellites (POES, i.e. JPSS) are expensive, have been plagued by serious management problems causing cost and schedule over-runs, and otherwise drain NOAA’s budget at the expense of other programs and activities.
Ranking Member Brad Miller (D-NC) said in his opening statement, “For years, the Nation’s multi-billion dollar weather and climate satellite programs have been at the center of this Committee’s investigations and oversight agenda. Despite relentless pressure from both sides of the aisle to get these programs under control, they continue to experience cost overruns and almost never launch on-schedule. Many of these problems existed before this Administration, but it is now the task of this Administration to fix those problems. In addition to being inexcusably wasteful, the problems expose the country to a very real chance that we will see a gap in our weather and climate forecasting abilities, given the expected life of the weather satellites now flying.”
Much of the discussion at the hearing centered on the broad range of technologies available to gather weather and climate data and whether those technologies could make up for the expected data gap. However, testimony suggested that satellites are irreplaceable in providing the type of advanced weather forecasting that the nation has come to expect, and that other technologies can be relied upon to provide complementary data to satellite systems.
NOAA’s testimony stated, “NOAA will continue to use all available data to ensure the best possible forecasts and warnings for the protection of the public. NOAA will further expand the public-private partnerships to collect weather related data whenever possible, however, recognizing that a foundational set of observations are a critical national asset required to protect life and property. NOAA will explore and leverage all opportunities, while operating in a cost-effective manner.”
Mr. Miller said, “Subcommittee Democrats will continue to work with NOAA to better understand how they will make use of existing assets and international cooperation to mitigate any consequences from the data gap.”
In spite of the well-known problems that NOAA’s satellite programs have encountered, Mr. Miller stressed the need for the satellite programs to ensure that weather forecasting is as accurate and long-range as possible. He said, “From the deadliest tornado year in more than half a century, to the unprecedented heat wave this month, we are facing severe, life-threatening, and record-breaking weather events across the country. Good weather data is more important than ever. Yes, satellites are expensive, but they are essential to protecting life and property, and the costs of inferior systems could be far greater.”
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