12Z model run on time, 9 balloon reports flagged
Model status
NWS is producing the 12Z model run on schedule. Forecast model output should reach forecasters, apps and websites at the usual times.
“12Z” is the run’s start time in UTC. NWS runs its main models four times a day — 00Z, 06Z, 12Z and 18Z — and each run begins by digesting a global snapshot of current conditions taken at that hour.
133 weather balloon launches were available to feed this run (11 in Alaska, 24 in Canada, 65 in Lower 48, 14 in Mexico, 10 in Caribbean, 9 in Pacific). “Stations available for ingest” means balloon soundings that arrived in time to be folded into the model’s starting picture of the atmosphere. Twice a day, sites across North America release balloons that measure temperature, humidity, pressure and wind all the way up. More stations reporting means a better-anchored starting point.
Balloon reports 12Z GFS RAOB RECAP...
Twice a day, NWS and partner agencies release weather balloons that carry a radiosonde — a small instrument package that radios back temperature, humidity, pressure and wind as it climbs. Those soundings are one of the main ingredients in a forecast model’s starting conditions. This section is the roll call of stations that had a problem for the 12Z run of the GFS.
9 stations were flagged: 1 sent no usable sounding at all, 6 reported a numeric status code, 2 were missing part of the transmission. A handful of gaps is normal and is not by itself a sign of a forecast problem — the models are built to work with an incomplete picture.
| Station | Where | What happened | As printed |
|---|---|---|---|
| SNP 70308 | St. Paul Islands, AK | No weather balloon data from this station reached the model for this cycle — either no launch happened or the data did not arrive in time. | No report |
| MCG 70231 | Mcgrath, AK | The station reported status code 10159. NWS does not publish a public legend for these codes, so we will not guess at what it means — it signals some problem with the launch or the data. unrecognised status code 10159 | 10159 |
| ANN 70398 | Annette Island, AK | Ground equipment failure — the station’s tracking/receiving equipment was down, so no usable sounding was produced. | 10142...Ground equipment failure |
| TWC 72274 | Tucson, AZ | The station reported status code 10159. NWS does not publish a public legend for these codes, so we will not guess at what it means — it signals some problem with the launch or the data. unrecognised status code 10159 | 10159 |
| SGF 72440 | Springfield/Municipal, MO | The station reported status code 10145. NWS does not publish a public legend for these codes, so we will not guess at what it means — it signals some problem with the launch or the data. unrecognised status code 10145 | 10145...Unfavorable weather conditions |
| TFX 72776 | Great Falls, MT | Ground equipment failure — the station’s tracking/receiving equipment was down, so no usable sounding was produced. | 10142...Ground equipment failure |
| GCM 78384 | Owen Roberts Airport Grand Cay · Cayman Islands | Ground equipment failure — the station’s tracking/receiving equipment was down, so no usable sounding was produced. | 10142...Ground equipment failure |
| SYA 70414 | Shemya AFB, AK | The station reported, but part of the sounding transmission was missing — specifically TTAA, the mandatory-levels section that carries the standard pressure levels up to 100 mb. | Missing Part TTAA |
| BDA 78016 | L F Wade Intl · Bermuda | The station reported, but part of the sounding transmission was missing — specifically TTBB, the "significant levels" section that carries the extra detail between the standard pressure levels. | Missing Part TTBB |
Show the original message
Exactly as NWS transmitted it. Everything above is our plain-English reading of this text — if the two ever disagree, this is the authoritative version.
000 NOUS42 KWNO 031526 ADMSDM SENIOR DUTY METEOROLOGIST NWS ADMINISTRATIVE MESSAGE NWS CENTRAL OPERATIONS COLLEGE PARK MD 1526Z TUE NOV 03 2026 12Z NWS model production is running on time with 11 Alaskan...24 Canadian...65 CONUS...14 Mexican...10 Caribbean...and 9 Pacific stations available for ingest. 12Z GFS RAOB RECAP... 70308/SNP - No report 70231/MCG - 10159 70398/ANN - 10142...Ground equipment failure 72274/TWC - 10159 72440/SGF - 10145...Unfavorable weather conditions 72776/TFX - 10142...Ground equipment failure 78384/GCM - 10142...Ground equipment failure 70414/SYA - Missing Part TTAA 78016/BDA - Missing Part TTBB Kempisty/SDM/NCO