The 17th annual SKYWARN Recognition Day (SRD) on-the-air event is underway today (December 5) until 2400 UTC. Cosponsored by ARRL and the National Weather Service, SKYWARN Recognition Day pays tribute to Amateur Radio operators for the vital public service they perform. A list of NWS participating offices is on the NWS SKYWARN Recognition Day web page. During the 24 hour event, Amateur Radio operators set up at NWS offices contact other hams across the country. This event is also aimed at strengthening the bond between Amateur Radio operators and local NWS offices.

SKYWARN Recognition Day is not a contest. During SKYWARN Recognition Day amateur stations exchange contact information with as many National Weather Service-based stations as possible on SSB, FM, CW, RTTY, and AM on 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6, and 2 meter bands plus 70 centimeters. Repeater contacts are permitted.

Stations exchange call signs, signal reports, location, and a one or two-word description of the weather (eg, sunny, partly cloudy, windy, rainy). Procedures are detailed on the NOAA SRD web page.

WX4NHC, the Amateur Radio station at the National Hurricane Center in Miami, will be taking part in SRD. The Hurricane Center ham station, which has participated in every SKYWARN Recognition Day since its inception years ago, will take advantage of the event for operator training.

The volunteer SKYWARN program comprises nearly 290,000 trained severe weather spotters -- many of them radio amateurs -- who identify severe storms and provide NWS forecasters with reports of local weather conditions during severe weather events.

To learn more, visit the SKYWARN Recognition Day website.