The Forecast Systems Laboratory (FSL) was a meteorological

Meteorology

Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere. Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 18th century. The 19th century saw breakthroughs occur after observing networks developed across several countries...

 research and development

Research and development

The phrase research and development , according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, refers to "creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use of this stock of...

 laboratory in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration , pronounced , like "noah", is a scientific agency within the United States Department of Commerce focused on the conditions of the oceans and the atmosphere...

 (NOAA)/Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research

Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research

The Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research is a division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . OAR is also referred to as NOAA Research....

 (OAR). In October 2005, it was merged with five other NOAA labs to form the Earth System Research Laboratory

Earth System Research Laboratory

The Earth System Research Laboratory is a laboratory in National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration /Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research ....

.

FSL conducted applied meteorological research and development to improve and create short-term warning and weather forecast

Weather forecasting

Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a given location. Human beings have attempted to predict the weather informally for millennia, and formally since the nineteenth century...

 systems, models, and observing technology. Supercomputing and other leading-edge technology are used in these applications. FSL then transferred these new scientific and technological advances to its clients which include NOAA's National Weather Service

National Weather Service

The National Weather Service , once known as the Weather Bureau, is one of the six scientific agencies that make up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the United States government...

, the commercial and general aviation

General aviation

General aviation is one of the two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...

 communities, the United States Air Force

United States Air Force

The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...

, many foreign weather forecasting services, and various private interests.