NOAA weather radio

The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, broadcasts routine and emergency weather information 24 hours a day on a set of channels in the 162 MHz range. When dangerous weather conditions are possible or imminent, these channels are used to broadcast short digital bursts that can automatically activate special receivers. The messages are coded by geographic regions (usually individual counties), so that weather radios can be set to only sound an alarm only if dangerous weather threatens the user's specific area. The voice information on NOAA weather radio is broadcast in regular FM format, and can be received by a wide variety of radios, including marine, aviation, amateur, family radio service, and amateur radios, as well as most scanners and some car radios. Because NOAA operates a network of these stations located around the country and each station clearly identifies its location on a regular basis, the NOAA weather channels can be used by radio enthusiasts to monitor propagation conditions in the VHF band.