The annual number of peer reviewed publications is an indicator of productivity and relevance and is tracked using online resources. Peer review is one of the important procedures used to ensure that the quality of published information meets the standards of the scientific and technical community. The Science Council method to determine the outyear targets is based on an average of the previous 3 years. * FY 2019 is the first year that we are reporting on both NOAA-authored publications (previously the only type of publication measured) and NOAA-funded publications.

The measure captures the count of significant and discrete NOAA research and development products that have transitioned to application at operational U.S. weather services and in the U.S. weather commercial sector. In addition, these weather products support NOAA contributions to the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017.

Metric calculated as the percent of Climate Prediction Center long range temperature and precipitation outlooks (monthly and seasonal outlooks) exceeding Heidke Skill Score (HSS) of 10 (10% better than a climatological forecast). Due to the scarcity of long range outlooks (six per month), scores are smoothed over a three year period. To better track results, three individual metrics are tracked – 1) All forecasts combined, 2) Temperature only, and 3) Precipitation only.

NCIs Regional Climate Services support development and delivery of place-based climate science and information products and services to help people make informed decisions relevant to region-specific economic activity, hazards, and vulnerability. The annual target notes the number of top economic sectors to be analyzed in each region as well as the total number of sectors analyzed across the six RCS regions. The sectors can vary from region to region (i.e., fishing/tourism will be an important sector for coastal areas but not in the Midwest).

The measure is the cumulative number of instances of NOAA datasets made openly available via partners' cloud platforms through collaborations with selected industry partners.

This measure shows the average number of days to complete an informal ESA Section 7 consultation. Federal agencies must consult with NOAA when any project or action might affect an ESA-listed marine species or a critical habitat. The process begins as informal consultation, but if it is determined that the action is likely to adversely affect a listed species and/or its critical habitat, the consultation must be formal. A large majority of consultations are handled informally.

The cumulative number of products across model regions by year (basically, products + regions complete). The measure is calculated by adding when a model component is completed and integrated into the regional model for the region indicated. As planned under the NOAA Climate and Fisheries Initiative, OAR will incorporate the three products above (high-resolution prototype ocean hindcasts, Seasonal to Multi-annual Predictions, and projections) into the regional models for the four regions listed (East Coast, West Coast, Arctic, and Pacific Islands). These enhanced regional models will be part of the information developed and provided to users to help manage U.S. fisheries that are impacted by climate change.

The measure captures the number of events that have documented NWS use of the Warn-on-Forecast System (WoFS) experimental model runs demonstrated real-time tornado warnings and have provided actionable guidance issued at least one hour in advance of the event.

This indicator measures the extent to which NOAA's Office of Space Commerce and the Department influence space policy decision processes at the agency, national, and international levels. It tracks the amount of positive outcomes effected for the U.S. commercial space industry due to concerted efforts by the Office of Space Commerce and DOC.

Tornado Warnings are issued to enable the public to get out of harm’s way and mitigate preventable loss. NWS forecasters issue approximately 2,900 Tornado Warnings per year, primarily between the Rockies and Appalachian Mountains. Tornado Warning statistics are based on a comparison of warnings issued and weather spotter observations of tornadoes and/or storm damage surveys from Weather Forecast Offices in the United States.

Lead Time (LT) for a Tornado Warning is the difference between the time the warning was issued and the time the tornado occurred (based on certified reports) in minutes, assuming the tornado tracked within the bounds of the warned area. Lead Times for all tornado occurrences within the U.S. are averaged to get this statistic for a given fiscal year. This average includes all warned events with zero lead times and all unwarned events.

Lead Time is calculated down to the minute for individual Tornado Warnings and tornadic events. Although the timing of the warning transmission is recorded to the nearest second, typically there is only an estimate to the nearest minute of when a tornado touches down. Additionally, even though we can compute the average tornado warning lead time to a precision of 30 second increments or less, the reporting of this value implies greater accuracy in the data based on scientific and logistical restrictions on tornado reporting and surveying. Most tornadoes cannot be visually tracked from beginning to end and post-storm damage surveying is the official method with which the NWS categorizes tornado characteristics (intensity, path length & width) but must rely on radar data to estimate the timing of the tornado track.