History of NOAA Weather Radio in Timeline

NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) is a 24/7 network of VHF FM stations broadcasting weather information from the National Weather Service. The broadcasts include local forecasts, synopses, climate summaries, and zone/lake/coastal waters forecasts. During hazardous weather, broadcasts are shortened to focus on outlooks, short-term forecasts, special statements, and tropical weather summaries. NWR also transmits non-weather alerts like AMBER Alerts, civil emergencies, and other hazard warnings sourced from the FCC's Emergency Alert System. The system utilizes automated broadcast technology, allowing for consistent updates and recycling of segments.

1960: Marine Weather Broadcasts Begin

In 1960, the U.S. Weather Bureau initiated an experiment broadcasting marine weather information on two VHF radio stations in Chicago and New York City. This marked the beginning of weather broadcasts for the public.

1965: KID77 in Kansas City Added

By 1965, KID77 in Kansas City, home to the Severe Local Storms Center, was added as the third continuous VHF radio transmitter by the Weather Bureau.

1965: Recommendation for Nationwide Radio Network After Palm Sunday Tornado Outbreak

In the wake of the 1965 Palm Sunday tornado outbreak, a key recommendation from the U.S. Weather Bureau was to establish a nationwide radio network for broadcasting weather warnings to the public.

1966: ESSA VHF Weather Radio Network Started

In 1966, the Environmental Science Services Administration (ESSA) initiated a nationwide program known as "ESSA VHF Weather Radio Network."

January 1967: KBA99 in Honolulu begins operation

In January 1967, the fourth continuous VHF radio transmitter, KBA99 in Honolulu, began operation.

September 1969: Expansion of NOAA Weather Radio to Coastal Locations After Hurricane Camille

In September 1969, following recommendations made by the Department of Commerce after Hurricane Camille, the NOAA Weather Radio service was expanded to coastal locations.

1969: KHB47 in New London, Connecticut Initially Used 163.275 MHz

In 1969, KHB47 in New London, Connecticut initially used 163.275 MHz.

1970: ESSA VHF Radio Weather and NOAA's Formation

By early 1970, ESSA listed 20 U.S. cities using 162.55 MHz and one using 163.275 "ESSA VHF Radio Weather." Later in 1970, the U.S. Weather Bureau became the National Weather Service (NWS) and operated 29 VHF-FM weather-radio transmitters under NOAA, which replaced ESSA.

1970: KHB47 Switches to 162.400 MHz

In 1970, KHB47 in New London, Connecticut, switched to 162.400 MHz to avoid overlapping with KWO35 in New York.

1970: Addition of 162.400 MHz frequency

In 1970, frequency 162.400 MHz was added for multiple stations

1970: Addition of Second Frequency 162.400 MHz

In 1970, to avoid interference and allow for more specific area coverage, the number of frequencies in use by multiple stations grew to two with the addition of 162.400 MHz.

September 1972: Denver Becomes the 60th NWR Station

In September 1972, Denver became the 60th NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) station.

1972: WWG75 Switches to 162.400 MHz

By 1972, WWG75 transmitting from Mt. Haleakala on Maui also switched to 162.400 MHz.

1974: NOAA Weather Radio Reaches 44% of US Population

In 1974, NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) covered approximately 44 percent of the U.S. population through 66 nationwide transmitters.

1975: Addition of Third Frequency 162.475 MHz

In 1975, a third frequency, 162.475 MHz, was added to the NOAA Weather Radio network to further enhance area coverage and minimize interference.

1975: Addition of 162.475 MHz frequency

In 1975, frequency 162.475 MHz was added for multiple stations

December 1976: Approximately 100 Stations Transmitting

By December 1976, there were roughly 100 NOAA Weather Radio stations transmitting on three channels.

May 1978: NWR Reaches 200 Radio Stations

In May 1978, NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) reached 200 radio stations with WXK49 in Memphis, Tennessee.

September 1979: NWR Reaches 300 Radio Stations

In September 1979, NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) reached 300 radio stations with WXL45 in Columbia, Missouri.

1981: Addition of Four Frequencies

By 1981, four additional frequencies (162.425, 162.450, 162.500 & 162.525 MHz) were brought into use by NOAA Weather Radio.

1981: Addition of frequencies 162.425, 162.450, 162.500 & 162.525 MHz

In 1981, the frequencies 162.425, 162.450, 162.500 & 162.525 MHz were added for multiple stations.

1988: NWS Operated About 380 Stations Covering 90% of Population

By 1988, the NWS operated about 380 stations covering approximately 90 percent of the nation's population.

1995: US Government Funds SAME Technology Development

In 1995, the U.S. government provided the necessary budget to develop Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME) technology across the entire NOAA Weather Radio network.

1997: SAME Alert Protocol Adopted by Emergency Alert System

In 1997, NOAA's Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME) alert protocol was adopted and put into use by the Emergency Alert System (EAS).

1997: Nationwide SAME Implementation and EAS Adoption

In 1997, nationwide implementation of SAME occurred when the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted the SAME standard as part of its new Emergency Alert System (EAS). NOAA Weather Radio expanded its public alerting responsibilities to include all hazards.

1997: Console Replacement System (CRS) Deployed

In 1997, the Console Replacement System (CRS) was deployed at NWS weather forecast offices, introducing a computerized voice nicknamed "Paul" based on DECtalk technology to speed up the delivery of warning messages.

May 1999: Over 500 Radio Stations in Operation

By May 1999, there were over 500 NOAA Weather Radio stations in operation.

2001: Over 800 Radio Stations in Operation

By the end of 2001, there were over 800 NOAA Weather Radio stations in operation.

2002: Introduction of "Craig", "Tom", and "Donna" Voices

In 2002, due to dissatisfaction with the voice of "Paul", the computerized voice, "Craig", "Tom", and "Donna" were introduced using the Speechify text-to-speech system from SpeechWorks.

2002: Introduction of Improved Voices "Craig" and "Donna"

In 2002, the National Weather Service contracted to introduce improved, more natural voices named "Craig" and "Donna".

2003: Additional Upgrades to "Donna" and Introduction of "Tom"

In 2003, further upgrades were made to "Donna" and an improved male voice nicknamed "Tom" was introduced, featuring variable intonation based on report urgency. The Spanish voice "Javier" was also added at a few sites.

April 2004: Public Alert-Certified Radio Models

Since April 2004, radio models marketed as "Public Alert-certified" must include specific features and meet certain performance criteria, as specified in electronics industry standard CEA-2009.

2004: Canada Integrates SAME Alerting into Weatheradio Canada

In 2004, Environment Canada integrated Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME) alerting capability into its Weatheradio Canada network.

September 2008: Walgreens to Utilize SAME Technology for Local Weather Alerts

In September 2008, Walgreens announced they would use SAME technology to deliver local weather alerts via LED billboards at their drugstore locations.

2009: CEA-2009 Electronics Industry Standard

Since April 2004, radio models marketed as "Public Alert-certified" must include specific features and meet certain performance criteria, as specified in electronics industry standard CEA-2009.

2012: Miami Spanish-Language Station Launched

In 2012, Miami launched WZ2531 in Hialeah, a dedicated NOAA Weather Radio station broadcasting weather information in Spanish.

2014: Brownsville Spanish-Language Stations Launched

In 2014, Brownsville launched WZ2541 in Pharr and WZ2542 in Harlingen, dedicated NOAA Weather Radio stations broadcasting weather information in Spanish.

2016: Over a Thousand NWR Transmitters Covering 95% of Population

As of 2016, there were over a thousand NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) transmitters across the U.S., covering 95% of the population.

2016: Introduction of new "Paul" voice

In 2016, a completely new voice from the VoiceText text-to-speech system, also named "Paul", was introduced and implemented nationwide by late in the year.

2016: NWS Replaced CRS Systems with Broadcast Message Handler (BMH)

In 2016, the NWS replaced almost all CRS systems with the Broadcast Message Handler (BMH), featuring an improved "Paul" voice and a Spanish voice named "Violetta".

April 2017: Wunderadio Streaming Service Discontinued

In April 2017, Weather Underground's Wunderadio section, a prominent internet audio streaming service for NOAA Weather Radio stations, discontinued its live streams.

January 1, 2019: Channels 2027 and 2028 Designated for Application Specific Messages

Effective January 1, 2019, channels 2027 (161.950 MHz, 27B) and 2028 (162.000 MHz, 28B) were designated as ASM 1 and ASM 2, respectively, for application specific messages (ASM) as described in Recommendation ITU-R M.2092.