Featured Heritage stories stories

This colorful photo shows reporters filming Hurricane Specialist Richard Pasch making a hurricane conference call with the National Weather Service New Orleans/Baton Rouge Office during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. On the right, a man sits on one of a bank of phones with his back to us. Reporters with cameras and microphones crowd around the table.

Hurricane hotline phones: A direct line to 20th-century weather forecasting

May 1, 2024

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This colorful photo shows reporters filming Hurricane Specialist Richard Pasch making a hurricane conference call with the National Weather Service New Orleans/Baton Rouge Office during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. On the right, a man sits on one of a bank of phones with his back to us. Reporters with cameras and microphones crowd around the table.

Photo of a NOAA satellite viewing Earth from orbit.

Celebrating Earth Day with NOAA Satellites

April 22, 2024

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Photo of a NOAA satellite viewing Earth from orbit.

photo of a passage from a handwritten cursive manuscript from an early draft of Rachel Carson's The Sense of Wonder (1965)

April 10, 2024

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photo of a passage from a handwritten cursive manuscript from an early draft of Rachel Carson's The Sense of Wonder (1965)

A black and white photo of a tornado with multiple vortices, one in the center, which reaches to the ground and a smaller one on either side which do not reach the ground.

Here's one of the first photos of a tornado ever

April 8, 2024

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A black and white photo of a tornado with multiple vortices, one in the center, which reaches to the ground and a smaller one on either side which do not reach the ground.

Black and white photo of Marie Tharpe at her drafting table in 1961.

March 21, 2024

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Black and white photo of Marie Tharpe at her drafting table in 1961.

Photo of a plaque that reads, "About 600 meters East of this location lies the oldest triangulation station in America, Buttermilk 1833, Buttermilk Hill, This plaque is established as a bicentennial commemoration through the cooperation of: The Rockafeller Family, The Nation Geodetic Survey of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, American Congress on Surveying and Mapping, The Westchester-Putnam Association of Professional Land Surveyors, Incorporated, 1976"

Celebrating National Surveyors Week with Buttermilk

March 18, 2024

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National Geodetic Survey

Photo of a plaque that reads, "About 600 meters East of this location lies the oldest triangulation station in America, Buttermilk 1833, Buttermilk Hill, This plaque is established as a bicentennial commemoration through the cooperation of: The Rockafeller Family, The Nation Geodetic Survey of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, American Congress on Surveying and Mapping, The Westchester-Putnam Association of Professional Land Surveyors, Incorporated, 1976"

Photo of a scuba diver swimming past a shipwreck. The story title, "New Study Opens Window to Cultural Past in Great Lakes Sanctuary, By Hans Van Tilburg and Rachel Plunkett" is overlayed onto the image.

New Study Opens Window to Cultural Past in Great Lakes Sanctuary

March 5, 2024

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maritime heritage

Photo of a scuba diver swimming past a shipwreck. The story title, "New Study Opens Window to Cultural Past in Great Lakes Sanctuary, By Hans Van Tilburg and Rachel Plunkett" is overlayed onto the image.

Black and white portrait of Dr. George Washington Carver

The Legacy of Dr. George Washington Carver

February 21, 2024

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Black and white portrait of Dr. George Washington Carver

Photo of the “Coastline” wave pool art installation outside NOAA’s Silver Spring, MD campus. Waves crash against a rough stone wall in a long rectangular pool.

Coastlines: Making waves outside, and inside, NOAA

January 30, 2024

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tides and currents

Photo of the “Coastline” wave pool art installation outside NOAA’s Silver Spring, MD campus. Waves crash against a rough stone wall in a long rectangular pool.

A collage of the five images from the NOAA heritage story, "Five significant moments in climate history."

Five significant moments in climate science history

January 17, 2024

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Earth science news

A collage of the five images from the NOAA heritage story, "Five significant moments in climate history."

Three photos of the 1880s silk bustle dress in which crumpled bits of paper containing a code were found. The back, front, and left side are shown in a triptych. The dress is a deep peach color with a striped placket on the front and a large bustle. The pocket where the code was found is located under the overskirt at the right hip.

'Cryptogram' in a silk dress tells a weather story

December 14, 2023

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weather conditions

Three photos of the 1880s silk bustle dress in which crumpled bits of paper containing a code were found. The back, front, and left side are shown in a triptych. The dress is a deep peach color with a striped placket on the front and a large bustle. The pocket where the code was found is located under the overskirt at the right hip.

Photo of the Portland Head Light in Cape Elizabeth, ME. The white lighthouse with a black top stands on a small promontory next to a white house with green trim and a red roof.

5 ways historic lighthouses and modern science come together at NOAA

August 7, 2023

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climate impacts

Photo of the Portland Head Light in Cape Elizabeth, ME. The white lighthouse with a black top stands on a small promontory next to a white house with green trim and a red roof.

Lightning in North Dakota: July 5, 2014.

Lightning detection: From ground to sky

June 20, 2023

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geostationary satellite (GOES)

satellite images

Lightning in North Dakota: July 5, 2014.

Eric Lopez, Kathlyn Nguyen, and Omar Madrigal make calculations for one of the practical tests in the National Society of Professional Surveyor Student Competition. They sit on the ground with the Washington Monument behind them. Nguyen wears a blue velvet period coat and powdered wigs lie on the ground next to them.

Surveying competition introduces students to the past, and a possible future career

May 30, 2023

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National Geodetic Survey

Eric Lopez, Kathlyn Nguyen, and Omar Madrigal make calculations for one of the practical tests in the National Society of Professional Surveyor Student Competition. They sit on the ground with the Washington Monument behind them. Nguyen wears a blue velvet period coat and powdered wigs lie on the ground next to them.

Black and white photo of the May 24, 1973, Union City tornado, with the words, "Union City May 24, 1973," superimposed over the image.

TORNADO INTERCEPT: The Union City Twister and the Birth of Doppler Radar

May 22, 2023

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Black and white photo of the May 24, 1973, Union City tornado, with the words, "Union City May 24, 1973," superimposed over the image.

NOAA Corps Basic Officer Training Class (BOTC) 134 poses for their class photo. They all wear the NOAA Corps dress whites.

The long evolution of the NOAA Corps uniform

May 22, 2023

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Marine & Aviation

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NOAA Corps Basic Officer Training Class (BOTC) 134 poses for their class photo. They all wear the NOAA Corps dress whites.

A U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey (USC&GS) cap sits on a dark wooden background. The black cap is shaped like a beret with a wide band at the bottom. On the band, "U.S. C. & G. SURVEY" is written in gold.

Our curator’s favorite object: U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey cap

May 17, 2023

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National Geodetic Survey

A U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey (USC&GS) cap sits on a dark wooden background. The black cap is shaped like a beret with a wide band at the bottom. On the band, "U.S. C. & G. SURVEY" is written in gold.

The Hand of NOAA sits outside the NOAA buildings in Silver Spring, MD. It is a hand several feet taller than a person reaching up with it's fingers outstretched to release four seagulls and is surrounded by small bushes.

On International Sculpture Day, celebrating art in NOAA’s front yard

April 28, 2023

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The Hand of NOAA sits outside the NOAA buildings in Silver Spring, MD. It is a hand several feet taller than a person reaching up with it's fingers outstretched to release four seagulls and is surrounded by small bushes.

Flooded homes along the Russian River in California. NOAA scientists and colleagues are installing the first of four permanent "atmospheric river observatories" in California this month, to better monitor and predict the impacts of powerful winter storms associated with atmospheric rivers

History Happening Now: Climate ready design, construction and infrastructure

April 24, 2023

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Flooded homes along the Russian River in California. NOAA scientists and colleagues are installing the first of four permanent "atmospheric river observatories" in California this month, to better monitor and predict the impacts of powerful winter storms associated with atmospheric rivers

Thin sections of portraits of Benjamin Franklin, Benjamin Banneker, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Eunice Newton Foote lined up next to each other.

5 citizen scientists of the 18th and 19th centuries

April 19, 2023

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Heritage stories

greenhouse gases

citizen science

Thin sections of portraits of Benjamin Franklin, Benjamin Banneker, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Eunice Newton Foote lined up next to each other.

A black and white photo of Ensign Pamela Chelgren being sworn in by Secretary of Commerce Peter G. Peterson on July 6, 1972. Her father, Navy Captain John Chelgren, stands between them, holding the Bible for the ceremony.

Commander Pamela Chelgren: First female officer in the NOAA Corps

March 15, 2023

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A black and white photo of Ensign Pamela Chelgren being sworn in by Secretary of Commerce Peter G. Peterson on July 6, 1972. Her father, Navy Captain John Chelgren, stands between them, holding the Bible for the ceremony.

Map of Category 5 - March 1993, Mid-Atlantic/New England

How a historic storm swept in a new era in forecasting

March 13, 2023

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extreme weather

Map of Category 5 - March 1993, Mid-Atlantic/New England

A black and white photo of a portrait in which a young Maria Mitchell peering through a telescope. 1852.

Maria Mitchell: America’s first female astronomer

March 1, 2023

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A black and white photo of a portrait in which a young Maria Mitchell peering through a telescope. 1852.

Rear Admiral Evelyn fields was the first woman and first African American to lead the NOAA Corps.

Evelyn Fields: A trailblazer

February 1, 2023

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Marine & Aviation

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Black History Month

Rear Admiral Evelyn fields was the first woman and first African American to lead the NOAA Corps.

Louis W. Uccellini, former director of the U.S. National Weather Service

A look back with Dr. Louis W. Uccellini

January 19, 2023

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Louis W. Uccellini, former director of the U.S. National Weather Service

Do you NOAA our history?

January 4, 2023

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A drawing of the HYDROLAB, showing a cross section of the inside. Two people are inside the Hydrolab, one at the lab and the other in the moon pool.

How NOAA’s first undersea lab helped scientists study corals

December 5, 2022

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A drawing of the HYDROLAB, showing a cross section of the inside. Two people are inside the Hydrolab, one at the lab and the other in the moon pool.

Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary 50th anniversary commemorative poster.

Love your national marine sanctuaries? Download our 50th anniversary posters today

January 10, 2022

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Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary 50th anniversary commemorative poster.

A person kayaks over a shipwreck within Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary

Preview: 2022 will mark 50 years of your national marine sanctuaries

October 22, 2021

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A person kayaks over a shipwreck within Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary

First U.S. Fish Commissioner Spencer Baird (on shore, at right) and colleagues seining in Little Harbor, Woods Hole, circa 1875. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/NEFSC Historical Collection.

Video: Celebrating 150 years of NOAA Fisheries Service

July 2, 2021

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First U.S. Fish Commissioner Spencer Baird (on shore, at right) and colleagues seining in Little Harbor, Woods Hole, circa 1875. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/NEFSC Historical Collection.

This photo shows the original U.S. Fisheries Commission lab building in Woods Hole, MA in 1875.

It started in a shed: The story behind the first U.S. marine station

June 9, 2021

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This photo shows the original U.S. Fisheries Commission lab building in Woods Hole, MA in 1875.

A NOAA diver surveys the progression of stony coral tissue loss disease in Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, July 2019.

Voices from Florida's Changing Coral Reefs

May 18, 2021

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A NOAA diver surveys the progression of stony coral tissue loss disease in Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, July 2019.

Sherman’s Lagoon friends go on a NOAA-themed adventure

September 29, 2020

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NOAA 50th Anniversary

NOAA Employees with 50 Years of Service

Celebrating a half century of service!

September 27, 2020

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NOAA Employees with 50 Years of Service

Cover to NOAA at 50 story map.

Story map: Celebrating NOAA at 50

September 14, 2020

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NOAA 50th Anniversary

Cover to NOAA at 50 story map.