00Z model run on time, 15 balloon reports flagged, satellite sector moved
Model status
NWS is producing the 00Z model run on schedule. Forecast model output should reach forecasters, apps and websites at the usual times.
“00Z” is the run’s start time in UTC. NWS runs its main models four times a day — 00Z, 06Z, 12Z and 18Z — and each run begins by digesting a global snapshot of current conditions taken at that hour.
126 weather balloon launches were available to feed this run (9 in Alaska, 25 in Canada, 61 in Lower 48, 13 in Mexico, 8 in Caribbean, 10 in Pacific). “Stations available for ingest” means balloon soundings that arrived in time to be folded into the model’s starting picture of the atmosphere. Twice a day, sites across North America release balloons that measure temperature, humidity, pressure and wind all the way up. More stations reporting means a better-anchored starting point for the GFS.
Balloon reports UPDATED 00Z GFS RAOB RECAP...
Twice a day, NWS and partner agencies release weather balloons that carry a radiosonde — a small instrument package that radios back temperature, humidity, pressure and wind as it climbs. Those soundings are one of the main ingredients in a forecast model’s starting conditions. This section is the roll call of stations that had a problem for the 00Z run of the GFS.
15 stations were flagged: 7 sent no usable sounding at all, 9 reported a numeric status code, 1 had a balloon burst early. A handful of gaps is normal and is not by itself a sign of a forecast problem — the models are built to work with an incomplete picture.
| Station | Where | What happened | As printed |
|---|---|---|---|
| SYA 70414 | Shemya AFB, AK | No weather balloon data from this station reached the model for this cycle — either no launch happened or the data did not arrive in time. unrecognised status code 10159 | No report for NAM..10159 for GFS |
| JAX 72206 | Jacksonville/Intl, FL | No weather balloon data from this station reached the model for this cycle — either no launch happened or the data did not arrive in time. | No report for NAM/GFS |
| CRP 72251 | Corpus Christi/Intl, TX | No weather balloon data from this station reached the NAM run. The GFS run did get a report from it. | No report for NAM..in for GFS |
| VEF 72388 | Las Vegas, NV | No weather balloon data from this station reached the model for this cycle — either no launch happened or the data did not arrive in time. | No report for NAM/GFS |
| BUF 72528 | Buffalo/Greater Buffalo Intl, NY | No weather balloon data from this station reached the NAM run. The GFS run did get a report from it. | No report for NAM..in for GFS |
| GRB 72645 | Green Bay/A.-Straubel, WI | No weather balloon data from this station reached the model for this cycle — either no launch happened or the data did not arrive in time. | No report for NAM/GFS |
| OTX 72786 | Spokane, WA | No weather balloon data from this station reached the model for this cycle — either no launch happened or the data did not arrive in time. | No report for NAM/GFS |
| OTZ 70133 | Kotzebue, Ralph Wien, AK | The station reported status code 10159. NWS does not publish a public legend for these codes, so we will not guess at what it means — it signals some problem with the launch or the data. unrecognised status code 10159 | 10159 |
| BET 70219 | Bethel/Bethel Airport, AK | The station reported status code 10159. NWS does not publish a public legend for these codes, so we will not guess at what it means — it signals some problem with the launch or the data. unrecognised status code 10159 | 10159 |
| SNP 70308 | St. Paul Islands, AK | The station reported status code 10159. NWS does not publish a public legend for these codes, so we will not guess at what it means — it signals some problem with the launch or the data. unrecognised status code 10159 | 10159 |
| AKN 70326 | King Salmon, AK | The station reported status code 10159. NWS does not publish a public legend for these codes, so we will not guess at what it means — it signals some problem with the launch or the data. unrecognised status code 10159 | 10159 |
| BRO 72250 | Brownsville/Intl, TX | Ground equipment failure — the station’s tracking/receiving equipment was down, so no usable sounding was produced. | 10142 |
| TWC 72274 | Tucson, AZ | The station reported status code 10159. NWS does not publish a public legend for these codes, so we will not guess at what it means — it signals some problem with the launch or the data. unrecognised status code 10159 | 10159 |
| GCM 78384 | Owen Roberts Airport Grand Cay · Cayman Islands | Ground equipment failure — the station’s tracking/receiving equipment was down, so no usable sounding was produced. | 10142 |
| GYX 74389 | Gray, ME | The balloon burst early. It stopped reporting at 452 mb, so this sounding only covers the lower part of the atmosphere — forecasters and models got no data above roughly 6.3 km (20,500 ft). (452 mb ≈ 6.3 km (20,500 ft)) unrecognised status code 10141 | Short to 452mb..10141 |
Satellite moves MDS STATUS...
Each GOES weather satellite has two “mesoscale sectors” — small, movable windows that the satellite photographs roughly every 60 seconds, far more often than its routine full-disk and continental scans. Forecasters aim them at whatever is most important that day. This section announces where they are being pointed and for how long.
GOES-West is pointing mesoscale sector 1 at a point about 110 mi SSW of Durango, CO — to support flash flood and heavy rainfall forecasting. That means this patch of sky gets a fresh satellite image about once a minute instead of every 5 to 10 minutes, so forecasters can watch storms develop almost in real time.
- Centre point
- 35.9°N, 108.9°W view on map
- Window
- until
- Reason given
- flash flooding ops across the Four Corners Region
Show the original message
Exactly as NWS transmitted it. Everything above is our plain-English reading of this text — if the two ever disagree, this is the authoritative version.
000 NOUS42 KWNO 170304 ADMSDM SENIOR DUTY METEOROLOGIST NWS ADMINISTRATIVE MESSAGE NWS CENTRAL OPERATIONS COLLEGE PARK MD 0304Z THU SEP 17 2026 The 00Z NWS model production suite continues to run on time with 9 Alaskan..25 Canadian..61 CONUS..13 Mexican..8 Caribbean..and 10 Pacific stations available for ingest into the 00Z GFS. UPDATED 00Z GFS RAOB RECAP... 70414/SYA - No report for NAM..10159 for GFS 72206/JAX - No report for NAM/GFS 72251/CRP - No report for NAM..in for GFS 72388/VEF - No report for NAM/GFS 72528/BUF - No report for NAM..in for GFS 72645/GRB - No report for NAM/GFS 72786/OTX - No report for NAM/GFS 70133/OTZ - 10159 70219/BET - 10159 70308/SNP - 10159 70326/AKN - 10159 72250/BRO - 10142 72274/TWC - 10159 78384/GCM - 10142 74389/GYX - Short to 452mb..10141 MDS STATUS... GOES-W MDS Sector 1 will be centered over 35.9N/108.9W until 18/1200Z in support of flash flooding ops (WPC Moderate/Slight Risk ERO) across the Four Corners Region (extended duration from prior request). Churchill/SDM/NCO