418
NOUS41 KWBC 251925
PNSWSH
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT 26-52
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HEADQUARTERS SILVER SPRING MD
325 PM EDT THU JUN 25 2026
TO: SUBSCRIBERS:
-NOAA WEATHER WIRE SERVICE
-EMERGENCY MANAGERS WEATHER INFORMATION NETWORK
-NOAAPORT
OTHER NWS PARTNERS AND EMPLOYEES
FROM: KATHRYN GILBERT, DEPUTY DIRECTOR
WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER
SUBJECT: SOLICITING COMMENTS ON PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE WEATHER
PREDICTION CENTER (WPC) NATIONAL FORECAST CHART THROUGH JULY 31,
2026
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE (NWS) IS SOLICITING COMMENTS ON THE
PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE WPC NATIONAL FORECAST CHART THROUGH JULY
31, 2026. THE EXISTING NATIONAL FORECAST CHART WILL CONTINUE TO
SERVE AS THE OFFICIAL PRODUCT DURING THE COMMENT PERIOD. THE
WPC NATIONAL FORECAST CHARTS PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF EXPECTED
WEATHER FOR THE CONTIGUOUS UNITED STATES (CONUS) FOR THE NEXT
THREE DAYS, WITH EMPHASIS ON CERTAIN HAZARDOUS AND SIGNIFICANT
WEATHER. THE NATIONAL FORECAST CHARTS SUMMARIZE FORECASTS FROM
LOCAL FORECAST OFFICES AND SEVERAL NATIONAL CENTERS FOR
ENVIRONMENTAL PREDICTION (NCEP) OFFICES INTO A UNIFIED DISPLAY,
INCLUDING SURFACE FEATURES (HIGHS, LOWS, AND FRONTAL SYSTEMS),
PRECIPITATION AREAS, AND HAZARDOUS WEATHER SUCH AS SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS, HEAVY RAINFALL, HEAVY SNOW, FREEZING RAIN, FIRE
WEATHER, AND TROPICAL SYSTEMS.
WPC IS PROPOSING TO MODERNIZE ITS NATIONAL FORECAST CHART TO
MAKE IT CLEARER AND EASIER TO READ. THE UPDATE TRANSITIONS
THESE MAPS TO A MODERN AUTOMATED SYSTEM THAT IMPROVES HOW
FORECAST INFORMATION IS DISPLAYED.
KEY CHANGES PROPOSED INCLUDE UPDATED COLORS AND STYLING CHOSEN
TO ENHANCE READABILITY AND ENSURE THE MAPS ARE ACCESSIBLE FOR
USERS WITH COLOR VISION DEFICIENCY. THE NEW CHART WILL
AUTOMATICALLY PULL DATA DIRECTLY FROM LOCAL FORECASTS AND
SEVERAL NCEP OFFICES OUTLOOKS. THIS ENSURES THAT THE PLACEMENT
OF WEATHER TYPES, AS WELL AS THE COLOR CHOICES USED TO REPRESENT
RAIN, SNOW, AND ICE, MATCH AND REMAIN ENTIRELY CONSISTENT WITH
THE NATIONAL DIGITAL FORECAST DATABASE (NDFD) FOR ANY GIVEN
TWENTY-FOUR HOUR PERIOD. HEAVY SNOW AND FREEZING RAIN HAZARD
AREAS WILL BE DRIVEN BY PROBABILISTIC DATA. SPECIALIZED HAZARD
OUTLOOKS SUCH AS SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS, FLASH FLOODING, AND
CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER WILL AUTOMATICALLY SYNC WITH THE LATEST
OUTLOOKS FROM WPC AND THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER (SPC). THE
DAYS 1-3 CHARTS ARE PROPOSED TO BE UPDATED TWICE A DAY, WHERE
CURRENTLY ONLY THE DAY 1 CHART IS UPDATED TWICE A DAY.
A DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE WPC NATIONAL
FORECAST CHART, WITH ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES, CAN BE FOUND AT THE
FOLLOWING LINK:
HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/NATIONALFORECASTCHART/NATIONALFORE
CASTCHART_MODERNIZATION.PDF
A DESCRIPTION OF THE WPC NATIONAL FORECAST CHART AND PRODUCT
EXAMPLES CAN BE FOUND AT THE FOLLOWING LINK:
HTTPS://NSDESK.SERVICENOWSERVICES.COM/API/G_NOA/NWSPC/RES2/44DB1
6CD3BAD8F107235AFF764E45AAA
INPUT ON THE PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE WPC NATIONAL FORECAST CHART
IS BEING SOUGHT FROM USERS. COMMENTS CAN BE SENT TO:
WPC SERVICES
WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER
COLLEGE PARK, MD
EMAIL: WPCSERVICES@NOAA.GOV
NATIONAL PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENTS ARE ONLINE AT:
HTTPS://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/NOTIFICATION/
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