Federal Projects

Client:
National Air and Space Administration (NASA)

Location:
Wallops Island Flight Facility

Implementation Highlights:

NASA’s Wallops Island Flight Facility leverages Earth Networks total lightning data, surface in-situ weather observations and decision support SaaS-based visualization platform to effectively manage weather impacts on its mission critical space launch and aviation operations. Sferic Maps’ alerting functionalities are used to notify personnel base-wide of threatening weather.  Additionally, the archiving feature is utilized for post storm damage analyses.

NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility is located in Virginia’s tidewater region on the Delmarva peninsula approximately 100 miles southeast of Washington DC.  The facility is host to numerous partners including the U.S. Navy, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Federal Aviation Administration, Virginia Space and the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport. Airfield and launch capabilities support flight operations ranging from research aircraft, unmanned aerial systems and high-altitude balloons to suborbital and orbital rockets which meet the needs of science, aerospace, defense, and commercial industries.

Client:
U.S. Army

Location:
Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall

Implementation Highlights:

The U.S. Army’s Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall leverages Earth Networks total lightning data and Sferic Siren outdoor alerting system to effectively manage weather impacts on critical military operations, training, and events. Decision-makers at this Joint Base initially installed a Sferic Siren system with horn and strobe warning capabilities to protect the thousands of members of the public that visit every summer for the weekly, live military performance called the Twilight Tattoo. Since then, they’ve expanded their weather intelligence suite to include real-time lightning data for tracking storms.

Located near Arlington, Virginia, Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall is comprised of Fort Myer, Fort McNair, and Henderson Hall. Joint Base Myer-Henderson hall is headquarters to serve personnel working throughout the National Capital Region and provides housing, support, and services to thousands of active-duty, reserve, and retired military, members of the U.S. Coast Guard, and their families stationed in the United States Army Military District of Washington. This Joint Base is also home to the military’s largest child development center, the Cody Child Development Center (CDC).  In addition to being an active Joint Base, Myer-Henderson Hall is also a visitor destination as it resides close to Arlington National Cemetery and hosts the Twilight Tattoo.

Client:
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Location:
Nationwide

Implementation Highlights:

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has been an Earth Networks partner since 2006. NOAA’s line offices including the National Weather Service (NWS) and Oceans and Atmospheric Research (OAR) use Earth Networks total lightning data and surface in-situ weather observations to enhance its nowcasting and severe weather forecasting at its Weather Forecast Offices (WFO’s) across the nation as well as at its world class research laboratories.

Via a Cooperative Research And Development Agreement (CRADA), Earth Networks established and deployed a system to meet the needs of the NWS and others that uses GPS data for determining the amount of total water vapor in the atmosphere, giving forecasters access to unique information to drive improved numerical weather prediction. Additionally, Earth Networks SaaS-based visualization platform, Sferic Maps, is available to NWS WFO’s to assist forecasters in storm tracking and alerting of rapidly changing weather conditions.

Earth Networks has played a key role over the years in driving public-private-academic partnerships, which is a primary tenant called for by the bi-partisan Weather Research and Forecast Innovation Act that was signed into law in 2017. In particular, Earth Networks and NOAA initiated the National Mesonet Program in 2006, which now include 40+ commercial and academic organizations delivering timely, valuable and cost-effective weather observations to the federal government and is a major component of the NWS Weather Ready Nation initiative.

Client:
Sandia National Labs

Location:
New Mexico, U.S.A.

Implementation Highlights:

Sandia National Laboratories leverages Earth Networks Sferic Sirens, Sferic Maps, total lightning data, and in-situ weather observations to effectively manage severe weather impacts on their critical munitions testing and transportation activity, which include working with sensitive energetic materials. In 2013, Sandia deployed enhanced weather monitoring, total lightning detection and mass notification capabilities across the entire Albuquerque facility. This custom weather technology solution suite enables them to test and transport munitions more safely and with greater confidence and efficiency.

Sandia National Laboratories is one of three National Nuclear Security Administration research and development laboratories. Sandia operates in New Mexico, California, Nevada, Hawaii, and Washington, D.C. Their Albuquerque, New Mexico facility is co-located with Kirtland Airforce Base and is home to over 20 Sferic Siren lightning warning strobe and horn systems. They pair these outdoor weather sirens with the Sferic Maps real-time weather visualization software to provide greater situational awareness, safer operations, and asset protection for their 13,740-acre New Mexico location.