The National Weather Service Los Angeles office uses a network of weather stations to forecast our weather.

These stations are part of the National Mesonet Program.

What You Need To Know

  • A mesonet is a network of weather stations that report real-time data of the atmosphere and its environment

  • The mesonet system helps improve our local weather forecasts

  • NWS Los Angeles covers San Luis Obispo to Long Beach

A mesonet is a network of weather tracking stations that report near real-time observations to better assess weather conditions and fill the gaps between National Weather Service sites

Based in Oxnard, meteorologists at the NWS Los Angeles office forecast weather from San Luis Obispo to Long Beach while San Diego’s NWS office covers Orange County and parts of Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

A better read on the details

Meteorologists use the mesonet to develop more accurate forecasts, monitor climate trends and observe conditions in the atmosphere.

Our mesonet comprises weather stations from private and federal companies, fire stations, schools, private citizens, the National Weather Service and more. 

Pictured here is an example of weather instruments the NWS uses to forecast weather. (Spectrum News/Keith Bryant)

Watch the video above to learn more about how the mesonet helps meteorologist spot wildfire risk, flash floods, drought and more. 

SoCal Forecasting

We spoke to Eric Boldt, who is the Warning Coordination Meteorologist at NWS Los Angeles, about the mesonet. He says there is always a challenge to make a better forecast, and that’s when the mesonet comes in.

“Not only is mesonets useful for seeing the information in real-time but also when you want to go back, do a post-analysis of a storm and understand what really happened because you may have missed as you went through the storm. It just confirms what you need to know for the future.,” said Boldt.

We also spoke to Boldt about the importance of the mesonet in local forecast and where the future of forecasting is headed in SoCal.

These mesonets help our meteorologists get more detailed data on the atmosphere, which helps them improve their forecast and warn the public of disruptive weather events ahead of time. Plus, it also helps local emergency officials too when disruptive weather, mudslides or wildfires strike.

Our team of meteorologists dives deep into the science of weather and breaks down timely weather data and information. To view more weather and climate stories, check out our weather blogs section.