Post #1196746
2026-04-16 13:41 UTC
There are other similar events that have happened over the past year, and I've noted a sharp drop in forecast quality and accuracy where I need it the most to perform my job duties.
The culprit here appears to be rooted in balloon launches that have been shifted, delayed, or eliminated, reducing input data that supports numerical weather models and provides critical observational data for meteorologists to review. It's a key broken chain in a system that was once the envy of the world.
Replies (2)
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@camless@m.ai6yr.org 2026-04-16 14:50
@paulknightly@mstdn.social Nailed it
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@susankayequinn@wandering.shop 2026-04-16 20:42
@paulknightly@mstdn.social I'm no meteorologist and I don't live in Kansas, but Pittsburgh (!!) is getting *way* more funnel touchdowns and severe storms and I've anecdotally noticed that they're spooling up faster or perhaps appearing more suddenly (without warning, no sirens). I got caught in one two summers ago and was like "where did this come from??" I signed up for all the alert systems I could find, but if they're messing with balloon launches... 😭