MesoWest has been designed for use by National Weather Service meteorologists and other professionals for protection of life and property. Comments/suggestions for improvement may be sent to atmos-mesowest@lists.utah.edu.
*** Unfortunately at this time, these features have been deprecated due to modifications and changes that have taken place within our University-based systems. Please contact us and we would be happy to discuss possible potential alternatives. ***
As mentioned on the Surface Weather Maps Help Page, the Surface Weather Maps allow the user to overlay National Weather Service (NWS) watch, warning, and advisory product layers onto the surface weather map.
To access these layers click "Layer Options" on the left panel of the map interface. See the Surface Weather Map Overlay Help Page for more on how to display these layers.
The NWS layers are generated by the Iowa Environmental Mesonet. They are updated every five minutes.
To interpret the NWS product layers, use the color to determine the significance level and the code to determine the specific phenomena.
Layer Color: The layer color determines the signficance level of the NWS product issued. The colors shown are...
Warning: Warning products are colored red.
Watch: Watch products are colored orange.
Advisory: Advisory products are colored yellow.
Statement: Statement products (e.g. Special Weather Statement) are colored tan.
Product Code: The VTEC Code indicates the type of phenomenon the NWS product is reffering to. The following table contains the codes and their respective phenomena.
Product Code
Phenomenon
AF
Ashfall
AS
Air Stagnation
BS
Blowing Snow
BW
Brisk Wind
BZ
Blizzard
CF
Coastal Flood
DS
Dust Storm
DU
Blowing Dust
EC
Extreme Cold
EH
Excessive Heat
EW
Extreme Wind
FA
Areal Flood
FF
Flash Flood
FG
Dense Fog
FL
Flood
FR
Frost
FW
Fire Weather
FZ
Freeze
GL
Gale
HF
Hurricane Force Wind
HI
Inland Hurricane
HS
Heavy Snow
HT
Heat
HU
Hurricane
HW
High Wind
HY
Hydrologic
HZ
Hard Freeze
IP
Sleet
IS
Ice Storm
LB
Lake Effect Snow and Blowing Snow
LE
Lake Effect Snow
LO
Low Water
LS
Lakeshore Flood
LW
Lake Wind
MA
Marine
RB
Small Craft for Rough Bar
SB
Snow and Blowing Snow
SC
Small Craft
SE
Hazardous Seas
SI
Small Craft for Winds
SM
Dense Smoke
SN
Snow
SR
Storm
SU
High Surf
SV
Severe Thunderstorm
SW
Small Craft for Hazardous Seas
TI
Inland Tropical Storm
TO
Tornado
TR
Tropical Storm
TS
Tsunami
TY
Typhoon
UP
Ice Accretion
WC
Wind Chill
WI
Wind
WS
Winter Storm
WW
Winter Weather
ZF
Freezing Fog
ZR
Freezing Rain