The National Weather Service (NWS) is changing the name one of its nine national centers to better reflect the diverse mission of the organization and provide a clearer and easier-understanding name.
Weather-Ready Nation reported Thursday that the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center (HPC) will now be known as the Weather Prediction Center. The change is expected to take place on March 5.
“The new name captures the great breadth of products and services delivered each and every day and night of the year as the center works alongside the rest of the National Weather Service team to build a Weather-Ready Nation,” said Jim Hoke, director of the renamed center, located in the NOAA Center for Weather and Climate Prediction in College Park, Md.
“Although our mission hasn’t changed at all, it is nice now to have a name everyone can understand, pronounce and spell,” Hoke said.
HPC employees first made the recommendation as part of a 2009 external review by the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, which suggested the center create a new strategic plan and broader name recognition.
It was found that those using HPC products were not familiar with the meaning of the term "hydrometeorological," and that the abbreviation "HPC" was also frequently confused with that for High Performance Computing.
The new name provides partners and external users with an easier-to-understand way to reference the center, whose product suite includes quantitative precipitation forecasts, short- and medium-range forecast graphics and discussions, winter weather products, surface analyses and more.
NWS weather forecast offices and river forecast centers, private sector forecasters, the media, academic community and general public all rely on products produced by the center.
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