ASOS Thunderstorm Sensor

The Automated Surface Observing System (ASOS) program is an essential, joint mission support of the National Weather Service (NWS), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and the Department of Defense (DOD). The ASOS is the nation's primary system for collecting and reporting surface-weather observations, primarily at airports, in support of aviation operations as well as weather forecasting and the timely issuance of warnings. There are approximately 960 ASOS sites globally. The NOAA NWS is upgrading its thunderstorm sensor to support the U.S. Navy's operation requirements for their ASOS specific sites overseas. The U.S. Navy requires thunderstorm detection at all Naval Air Stations. The thunderstorm sensor is designed to specifically sense the electromagnetic signature from lightning strikes while filtering out other electrical noise. It also detects and reports range and bearing of cloud-to-ground lightning and detects and counts cloud lightning. The sensor provides critical local lightning information, both for meteorological applications as well as threat data, to facilitate advance warnings, initiate safety procedures, and isolate equipment with full confidence. The ASOS program is responsible to the U.S. Navy for the procurement and testing of all sensors on ASOS systems worldwide. The contractor must provide a Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS) thunderstorm sensor.