12Z model run on time, 1 balloon reports flagged, 2 satellite sectors moved
Model status
NWS is producing the 12Z model run on schedule. Forecast model output should reach forecasters, apps and websites at the usual times.
“12Z” 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.
108 weather balloon launches were available to feed this run (12 in Alaska, 25 in Canada, 41 in Lower 48, 13 in Mexico, 8 in Caribbean, 9 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 12Z 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 12Z run.
1 station was flagged: 1 sent no usable sounding at all, 1 reported a numeric status code. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| BRW 70026 | Barrow/W. Post W. Rogers, AK | Ground equipment failure — the receiving, tracking, processing, or other ground system failed. | No report for the NAM...10142 for the GFS |
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-East is pointing mesoscale sector 1 at a point about 45 mi E of Indianapolis, IN. 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
- 39.8°N, 85.3°W view on map
- Window
- from until
GOES-East is pointing mesoscale sector 2 at a point about 105 mi E of North Platte, NE. 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
- 41.0°N, 98.8°W view on map
- Window
- from until
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 151520 ADMSDM SENIOR DUTY METEOROLOGIST NWS ADMINISTRATIVE MESSAGE NWS CENTRAL OPERATIONS COLLEGE PARK MD 1520Z SAT AUG 15 2026 The 12Z GFS began and is running on time with 12 Alaskan...25 Canadian...41 CONUS...13 Mexican...8 Caribbean...and 9 Pacific raobs available for ingest. UPDATED 12Z RAOB RECAP... 70026/BRW - No report for the NAM...10142 for the GFS MDS STATUS... GOES-E MDS Sector 1 is centered over 39.8N/85.3W from 1505Z until 16/1200Z to support excessive rainfall and severe weather monitoring across portions of the Midwest including the Central Plains and Ohio Valley. GOES-E MDS Sector 2 is centered over 41N/98.8W from 1505Z until 16/1200Z to support excessive rainfall and severe weather monitoring across portions of the Midwest including the Central Plains and Ohio Valley. Ready/SDM/NCO