National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office

2013 Spotter Training

Spotter training sessions for 2013 have been completed.  No further talks will be scheduled until next year.  Please check back in early 2014 for information on the next round of spotter training classes.  If you still wish to complete a spotter training course, an online version can always be found by clicking here.

The National Weather Service (NWS) and emergency managers hosted spotter training classes across central Iowa this spring.  There was a combination of "in-person" spotter training classes scattered across central Iowa and webinar-based distance learning classes.  In-person spotter training classes were offered in larger cities and towns and in several rural counties and small towns.  Every county in the NWS, Des Moines, County Warning Area (CWA) will likely have an "in-person" spotter training class at least every other year.  To supplement "in-person" training, the NWS also conducted weekly webinars using Join-Me internet-based distance learning webinars.  All webinars were open to all spotters.

One "advanced" spotter class was offered and built on what was taught in the regular class. It was intended for those who wish to do mobile spotting and desire a deeper understanding of meso-scale and storm scale meteorology as it relates to storm spotting.  Spotters interested in attending this class should have attended a regular spotter class either 'in-person" or webinar based.  The advanced presentation was also offered in webinar form towards the end of the season. 

In-Person Spotter Presentation Details

Webinar Spotter Presentation Details - It's Simple to View a Webinar!