Local Climate & Weather Information

I've compiled some weather and climate-related websites containing information specific to the State of Nebraska and Great Plains region.  For clarification, the weather is the short term day to day atmospheric conditions, and climate is the longterm trend of weather.  Weather can be thought of as what outfit you're going to wear on any specific day while climate is your entire wardrobe.  Someone that lives in a polar region will probably own some lightweight clothing, but in general, their wardrobe would be heavier than someone who lives in a tropical region.  For more information on the differences between weather and climate refer to  NASA - What's the Difference Between Weather and Climate?

Below are the links to the websites with brief descriptions explaining what kind of information can be found at each site.

Weather Underground - Omaha, NE

Weather Underground provides current, historical, and forecasted weather information in detail.  Multiple nearby weather stations can be reviewed to get a full spectrum of weather variations in the region.  Daily historical records can be reviewed to compare to other years, the current day, etc.  

Nebraska State Climate Office

The Nebraska State Climate Office is operated by the University of Nebraska – Lincoln and is responsible for providing science-based climate information for the State of Nebraska.  They monitor weather and climate by utilizing a network of almost 70 weather stations throughout the State. The website provides regional data for climate normals, frost/freeze statistics, and historical temperature and precipitation trends throughout the State.

High Plains Regional Climate Center

The High Plains Regional Climate Center is operated by the University of Nebraska – Lincoln and provides climate maps, data, tools related to climate for agriculture, and webinars to educate the public on regional climate and weather-related information.  This information is provided as a resource to aid in decision making in agriculture, water resources, and the general public.  The High Plains Regional Climate Center also works on research projects related to water resources, drought planning, regional climate impacts in general.

Understanding and Assessing Climate Change Implications for Nebraska

This is a report written in 2014 by the Applied Climate Sciences Group within the University of Nebraska’s School of Natural Resources.  The report discusses observed changes in the State’s climate, what is causing the changes, and future climate projections and their implications.  The report also provides a recommendation that a State Climate Adaptation Plan be developed in an effort to mitigate and adapt to climate change.  However, at this time the State Legislature has not passed the bill necessary to proceed with the development and implementation of a climate adaptation plan.

The Implications of Climate Change for Nebraska: Summary Report of Sector-Based Roundtable Discussions

This report, and the roundtable sector discussions summarized in this report, are a follow up to the 2014 report, Understanding and assessing climate change: Implication for Nebraska:  A synthesis report to support decision making and natural resource management in a changing climate.  This report focuses on implications and adaptation/mitigation for Nebraska’s ecosystems and wildlife, human health, forests, agriculture, food, water, energy, faith communities, college campuses, and urban and rural communities.

Climate Change Impacts - Nebraska

Climate Nexus is an organization with the mission of changing the conversation on climate change from divisive arguments to constructive solutions.  The information devoted to Nebraska is a summary of climate change implications specific to the State, the perceptions of renewable energy policies in the State, and how renewable energy generation could benefit the State.  This provides a concise summary and quick bullet point items on how climate change could impact Nebraska.