Open data, crowd-sourced data streams and data mining large data sets of social media provide users new avenues to procuring data and information to help analyze and communicate weather impacts in real time as well as doing post-event analysis. But how do open data portals, crowdsourced (informal data) and real-time observations and opening up data APIs help data users get to the climate observations they need to make decisions? This panel will discuss how new technologies can be used to make data available, data quality issues and developing tools and products to help decision makers get the data in a workable form Moderator: Nazila Merati (Nazila Merati and Associates PLC)

The AMS Washington Forum brings science together with business, communications, technology, public policy and many other disciplines. Join us for this session developed in coordination between students and scientists where you will get knowledge not found in a classroom. We will discuss why the AMS Washington Forum’s student participation program is a young professional’s dream experience.

This series of four invited talks provides updates on international weather services.

Following the Spengler talk, this panel will expound on Jon’s concepts and specifically discuss the linked challenges of energy and water.

This session will address the future of satellite observations, including the coming revolution in cubesats, smallsats, and what it means for the atmospheric and related sciences communities.

The American Meteorological Society and the Office of the Federal Coordinator for Meteorology co-sponsored the Forum on Observing the Environment from the Ground Up held March 8-9, 2016. This Session will further the discussions begun at the Forum to discuss innovative observing efforts underway nationwide that are focused on conditions from the surface through the atmospheric boundary layer. The environmental observational landscape continues to evolve rapidly. Federal and local agencies, private firms, academic institutions, and the general public are increasingly taking advantage of new instrumentation, communication, and software technologies to meet their needs. Participants will be able to provide their perspectives on prospects for taking advantage of new technologies, improving coordination among the diverse efforts throughout the environmental observing enterprise, and meeting the multiple and ever growing needs of the users of environmental information.

This session will address the need to develop a climate information system as a vital part of society’s response to climate change, in addition to adaptation and mitigation. Understanding what is happening and why, and what it implies for the future, better informs communities and decision makers what aspects to take account of and plan for and what parts are natural variability. Many pieces of such a system exist but they are not coherently organized and managed, or response to many user needs. A white paper describing such a will be the basis for discussion and feedback at this session. Session attendees will be encouraged to join a discussion about the merits of this proposal.