Weatherscan

Infobox TV channel
name = Weatherscan
logofile = Weatherscan logo 2005.png logosize = 200px
logoalt = Weatherscan logo currently in use since late 2005
logo2 =
launch = 1999
closed date =
picture format =
share =
share as of =
share source =
network =
owner = Landmark Communications; pending sale to NBC Universal, Blackstone Group & Bain Capital [ [http://www.blackstone.com/news/press_releases/7-6-2008.pdf NBC Universal, Bain Capital & Blackstone to Acquire The Weather Channel Properties ] ]
slogan = All Local, All The Time
country = United States
language = American English
broadcast area = National, with local information only
headquarters =
former names = Weatherscan Local (1999-2003)
replaced names =
replaced by names =
sister names = The Weather Channel
timeshift names =
web = [http://www.weather.com www.weather.com] (TWC webpage)
terr serv 1 =
terr chan 1 =
sat serv 1 =
sat chan 1 =
cable serv 1 = Verizon FiOS
cable chan 1 = Channel 49
cable serv 2 = Available on other cable systems
cable chan 2 = Check local listings for channels
sat radio serv 1 =
sat radio chan 1 =
adsl serv 1 =
adsl chan 1 =
online serv 1 =
online chan 1 =

Weatherscan (originally called Weatherscan Local) is a TV channel offered by The Weather Channel. The channel is carried on select cable systems in the United States. The channel features uninterrupted local weather information, with graphics on a continuous loop. All content is produced by a computer at the cable company's headend and unlike its mother-network, Weatherscan does not feature on-air talent of any kind.

It uses a slightly-modified version of the IntelliStar weather information system used for the main TWC channel. However, unlike TWC's Intellistar, it uses different graphics, features some additional weather products and runs continuously. A pre-recorded narration notes when several segments appear - including "Your Current Conditions," "The Local Doppler Radar," and "Your Local Forecast." The narration is not the same as TWC's local forecasts and uses a female announcer.

Weatherscan is available in many top markets around the US, although it's availability is nowhere near that of The Weather Channel. Many cable headends only offer Weatherscan on their digital cable lineup, although a few cable headends also have the channel on their basic cable lineup. Verizon FiOS currently carries the network on their limited analog lineup in all areas it serves, but is in the process of making their entire lineup digital. Interesting to note, federal law requires that a cable system allow a person to get just basic cable (local broadcast channels and public, educational, and governmental (PEG) channels) and digital service, without subscribing to expanded service where The Weather Channel is often carried. [ [http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/cablechannels.html FCC Consumer Facts] ]

Weatherscan's Packages

Weatherscan has a variety of segments that show different information regarding the weather. Below are a list of known packages on Weatherscan and some brief information about them. Note that some Weatherscans do not carry some of these packages.

Your Local Forecast

The local forecast is the segment that all Weatherscans have. It includes all local weather data, including current conditions, local radar, and 5-day forecast.

Your Local Radar

The local radar segment shows the local doppler radar looping continuously for one minute.

Traffic Report

The top 40 markets have the traffic report on Weatherscan. This package includes local traffic delays and traffic flow.

Airport Conditions

The airport segment shows local airport delays and weather conditions for two airports in the headend's metropolitan area. It also has a list of delays for major airports throughout the nation. This is one of the segments that most Weatherscans carry.

Travel Forecast

This segment is ideal for individuals who plan to travel. The travel segment shows regional forecast maps and a three day forecast for select cities nationwide. As with the airport segment, travel is one of the most common segments on Weatherscan.

International Forecast

People who plan to travel around the globe can watch the international forecast for weather for select cities worldwide.

Weather and Your Health

Weather and your health displays a variety of health-related forecasts, including air quality, ultraviolet index, and sun safety information.

Ski and Snow (seasonal)

The skier's forecast shows a list of ski resorts and their conditions throughout the country for those who plan to hit the slopes. It also includes a snowfall forecast map.

Golf Forecast (seasonal)

The golfer's forecast includes the forecast for golf courses and resorts as well as a golf index and tee time forecast.

Garden (seasonal)

Garden is a rare segment that very few headends carry. This package contains information for lawn and gardening activities. It includes a precipitation forecast map, a drought severety map among other maps.

Boat and Beach (seasonal)

Boat and beach is only available for select headends in coastal locations. It includes marine forecast, tidal information, and surf reports.

Spanish Forecast

Provides the current conditions and forecast in Spanish. This package is extremely rare.

Weatherscan Timeline

1999
* Weatherscan Local debuts, showing only a 2 minute long local forecast back to back. The only song that was used was a two minute cut of "Fair Weather" by Trammell Starks.

Late 2000
* Weatherscan Local gets a new look. The weather icons' animation was removed (they were animated prior to this update) and are now still icons.
* New products are added to several Weatherscan Locals nationwide, including health, airports, Spanish forecast, among others. Some Weatherscans have been reported to still show only the local forecast back to back.
* As for the music, an entire album of Trammell Starks music is now played, previously it only played one of his songs. A few cable headends didn't get this update until late 2002.

2001
* Weatherscan Local's local forecast now comes directly from The Weather Channel, previously from the National Weather Service. This has occurred to Weatherscan Local earlier than the WeatherStars used on The Weather Channel.

September 27, 2003
* Weatherscan Local has been simplified to "Weatherscan" and has received entirely new graphics. The weather icons once again become animated, and the graphics are a lot more superior than its older version.
* A "severe weather mode" was added to Weatherscan during this upgrade. The yellow, blue colors become red and gray, and it only shows the local forecast, and a severe weather message saying "Weatherscan gives you this special message because of severe weather in your area".
* Weatherscan gets new music, now featuring tracks by unknown production music companies.
* The narration by "Local on the 8's" announcer Allen Jackson is replaced with female narration by Amy Bargeron.
* The narration for the 36 hour forecast is changed from "the forecast for your area" to "your local forecast."

Early 2004
* The first signs of the music "skipping" are heard on Weatherscan. Eventually, the music started skipping more often.

Early-mid August 2004
* Weatherscan's font becomes bolder.
* A fade in-fade out effect was added in between each day on the 36-hour forecast.
* The local radar is enhanced, now showing more major roads on the radar, and city identifiers that are closer to the domestic InteliStar's.
* The local radar now shows the precipitation's movement within the past three hours instead of two.
* The music has been fixed show it does not skip.
* Some icons, such as "AM Clouds/PM Sun" and the nighttime "Mostly Clear" are updated so they are identical to the icons on the IntelliStar.

February 17, 2005
* The 36-hour forecast now becomes a 48-hour local forecast, now showing the forecast for today up to the next day's night.
* The point size of the text on the local forecast becomes larger, now bigger than the "Local Forecast" title heading.
* Some songs on Weatherscan have been replaced with new ones.
* During severe weather mode, Weatherscan now shows only the local radar, weather bulletins (if a weather watch or statement is issued), and the special weather message.

July 2005
* A "traffic report" was added to Weatherscans on the top viewing markets such as Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Atlanta, showing the traffic conditions from Traffic Pulse for a city's metropolitan area. Also, a 1-minute long local radar segment has been added to Weatherscans nationwide.
* The Weatherscan in Frankfort, Kentucky had a travel forecast for 2 weeks then was never seen again until May 2008.

September 27, 2005
* Weatherscan receives a bold new look in accordance with The Weather Channel's new logo and graphics. An "L-bar" was added, that shows instant information to viewers, which is much similar to NBC Weather Plus. Current conditions, extended forecast, local radar, and local observations are now shown constantly to the viewer.
* More narration is added to Weatherscan, such as narration to the local radar, traffic segment, among other segments.
* The severe weather message is changed to "Weatherscan/ brig you this message because of severe weather in your area."
* Note: Areas that were in Hurricane Rita's path received this Weatherscan update about a week earlier.

December 2005
* A traffic.com advertisement graphic is added at the end of the traffic report segment.
* The narration for the "traffic flow" screen is removed.

March 2006
* More songs are removed and more new ones have been added to Weatherscan.

April 2006
* HiRAD technology begins to be introduced into some Weatherscans.

August 2006
* Due to the discontinuation of P. Allen Smith's garden segments on The Weather Channel, the P. Allen Smith advertisement at the end of the garden segment is replaced with a generic weather.com/garden advertisement.

December 12, 2006
* Weather icons that have been in use on Weatherscan from 1999-2006 were replaced by more realistic icons. * The slashes for phrases such as "Partly Cloudy/Wind" on the extended and daypart forecasts are replaced by commas (e.g. "Partly Cloudy, Wind").

January 23, 2007
* As with the TWC IntelliStar, the Weatherscan radar has been changed. "Light" and "Heavy" changed to "rain," and "mix" and "snow" were added. The color key was removed from the mini-radar in the corner of the screen.

May 22, 2007
* The radar legend becomes interactive with the precipitation. The snow and mix color keys now only display if frozen precipitation is detected.

October 24, 2007
* The traffic overview map on Weatherscans with this segment is updated to match the map on the domestic IntelliStar.

November 5, 2007
* Several new songs were added to the music loop.

National Feed

Since Weatherscan Local's debut, there has been a national version of this channel that is used for satellite companies and smaller cable companies that cannot afford Weatherscan Local. This channel features current temperatures and the forecast for the next several days for select cities throughout the United States, as well as national and regional radar images. This channel is named simply Weatherscan. There is uncertainty whether or not the national version was discontinued. However, since Weatherscan Local simplified its name to "Weatherscan" in 2003, it is likely that the national feed was discontinued during or around that time.

ee also

*The Weather Channel
*IntelliStar
*Weather Star XL
*WeatherStar
*WeatherStar Jr

References

External links

* [http://www.weather.com The Weather Channel]
* [http://www.weather.com/aboutus/television/weatherscan/ Weatherscan page at weather.com]