Category: Health & Safety

The Sea Level Calculator: A Comprehensive Data Resource for Coastal Communities

1/14/2025 - By coast.noaa.gov. With changing sea levels and more frequent and intense storms, tens of millions of people in the U.S. are at risk from coastal hazards. Communities need to understand how sea level and flooding are changing in their location so they can adapt to these risks. NOAA combined existing… SEE MORE

Wake foiling jumping in the air off the wake behind a boat

5 Keys to Wakefoiling Behind a Boat

1/11/2025 - By Ben Greenwood. Wakefoiling provides a vehicle for progression without the impact. Use these tips from two experts to get started. In watersports, change through progression is a constant. Ever-improving technology, mind-blowing athletic advancements, and the search for the newest iteration of water gliding go on. Foiling is the newest… SEE MORE

Image Credits: Postcard of the U.S. Weather Bureau Building at Charles City, Iowa. c. 1900. Note the Weather Forecast Flag system flags flown on the flag pole mounted on the roof. They appear to be the blue flag with a black pennant above, indicating a forecast of higher temperatures and rain. (Image credit: Courtesy of Steve Doty, NOAA NCDC (ret.))

Hoist a Flag for Cold waves and Other Weather Conditions

1/7/2025 - By noaa.gov. Nowadays, we have radio, TV and the internet to tell us when a cold front or other weather is headed our way. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, signal flags were used to alert U.S. citizens to weather conditions. The origin of weather signal flags Weather… SEE MORE

Snow covered tree after a winter squall along the water.

4 Tips to Keep You Safe During a Snow Squall

12/18/2024 - By noaa.gov. It’s that time of year to watch out for one of the most dangerous and underplayed winter hazards while on the road: Snow squalls. A snow squall is a brief period of intense snowfall and wind that leads to whiteout conditions, zero visibility, a possible flash freeze and dangerous… SEE MORE

Coast Guard Seminar Explores Fishing Vessel Safety at Pacific Marine Expo

12/14/2024 - By Ben Hayden. The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) presented its "Fishing Vessel Safety Program Updates" seminar during day two of the Pacific Marine Expo. The session detailed challenges and partnerships aimed at improving safety within the commercial fishing industry, also providing a look at the Coast Guard’s work on policy enforcement, marine… SEE MORE

Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies offers Commercial Fishermen Free Safety Classes

12/12/2024 - By Ben Hayden. The Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) offers a range of training programs designed for professionals in the maritime industry. Combining traditional hands-on instruction with newer technologies, MITAGS provides educational resources to prepare crews for work demands and accident response. If an individual can show… SEE MORE

AI-Powered Marine Camera for Navigation and Safety

12/5/2024 - By Carli Stewart. Look out, an artificial intelligence (AI) pioneer in marine safety, revolutionizes marine navigation by launching the LOOKOUT camera system, designed to detect hazards beyond human capability. Built by a team of leading AI researchers, video game developers, 3D designers, and hardware engineers, the LOOKOUT camera system uses… SEE MORE

Eyes Wide Open: Boosting Fishing Safety

12/4/2024 - By Paul Molyneaux. For all those who have fished near busy shipping lanes, searched for buoys in the foggy dark, or had the terror of someone going overboard, Nobeltec is partnering with SEA.AI to bring an added measure of safety, as well as operational efficiency, to its TimeZero Pro software. “Our system includes optical… SEE MORE

Virginia proclaims Commercial Waterman Safety Week

9/28/2024 - By Larry Chowning. As a reminder that commercial fishing is an important part of the State of Virginia’s economy, Commonwealth’s governor Glenn Youngkin issued a proclamation recently that the week of September 15-21 is “Commercial Waterman Safety Week.” The proclamation notes that the “Commonwealth’s commercial watermen and seafood industry generate… SEE MORE

July 25, 2024: Emergency responders on the scene at the California Park Fire. Right: August 8, 2024: National Weather Service Incident Meteorologist Ryan Walbrun briefs the CalFire Incident Management Team on smoke trajectory and impacts while deployed on the Park Fire. (Image credit: Left: California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire); Right: NOAA.)

It’s not Just Hot Air: Improved Air Quality Model Aids Forecasters in The Field

9/13/2024 - By noaa.gov. Imagine you’re a NOAA weather forecaster in the field during a raging, rapidly-spreading wildfire. Your title is incident meteorologist (or IMET), and your job is to support agencies and emergency responders who fight these devastating blazes by providing accurate weather forecasts. Your forecasts help determine a variety of factors about… SEE MORE