Celebrating NOAA Heritage in 2020: A Milestone Year in So Many Ways

As the American Meteorological Society celebrates its Centennial year, so does NOAA its 50th Anniversary and the National Weather Service its Sesquicentennial!

The history and heritage of these organizations is a story of science, service, and stewardship ... to understand and predict changes in climate, weather, oceans and coasts; to share that knowledge and information with others; and to conserve and manage coastal and marine ecosystems and resources.

To understand NOAA (and the science community at large) today and where we will be in the future, one must look to the past for both context and inspiration. In this light and in celebration of its storied history, NOAA has embarked on several short- and long-term activities to re-engage and invigorate the agency’s approach to preserving its heritage. These projects include refining our approaches to collecting, preserving, documenting, and -- most importantly -- sharing the information, documents, research, and personal stories that, collectively, comprise our agency’s history. This presentation will provide insight into these approaches, and most importantly, how AMS members and friends can contribute to the projects and the agency’s storied history.