Severe weather forecasting at the University of Wisconsin is at risk due to substantial federal funding cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, according to NPR.
Jonathan Martin, a professor in the UW Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, said the reductions, if sustained, could impair the university’s ability to contribute to accurate and timely weather warnings — an essential tool for public safety during hurricanes, tornadoes and other extreme events.
Martin warns that these cuts threaten not only public safety but also decades of vital climate monitoring and collaborative research.
“We’re putting people’s lives at risk in significant weather-prone areas,” Martin said. “We won’t have the data we used to warn people to the extent they’ve become accustomed to. It’s dangerous.”
While exact figures for the proposed budget cuts remain unclear, the impacts are already being felt, according to Martin.
Under the proposal, which still requires congressional approval, the agency’s 2026 budget would be cut by over 25% from its current level of approximately $6 billion, according to NPR.
UW, which collaborates closely with NOAA and relies on its resources, could lose access to critical atmospheric data used in forecast modeling, according to Martin.
Some weather service forecast offices — about 80 across the country — have already had to make tough decisions about resources, according to Martin.
“In Green Bay, for example, they launch weather balloons twice a day to measure the full vertical structure of the atmosphere,” Martin said. “That data is absolutely irreplaceable for initializing weather models and monitoring evolving severe weather conditions.”
The consequences extend beyond daily forecasting. NOAA also maintains the world’s longest-running daily carbon dioxide record from Mauna Loa, Hawaii — data that informs understanding of climate change, Martin said.
“That’s in danger of being stopped,” Martin said, calling it a “huge loss” for global climate monitoring.
Martin stressed that voicing opposition to the cuts can help. He recommends voting and calling representatives with an emphasis on jeopardizing safety.
“We are all at the mercy of the weather,” Martin said. “The only thing that intervenes is expert knowledge, and that is now under attack.”
As Wisconsin enters the summer storm season, the consequences of these budget cuts could become immediately apparent, Martin said.
Reduced funding might delay emergency response times and limit resources available for disaster relief, according to Martin.
“Without intervention, nothing will be made better,” Martin said. “It’ll only be a reduction in safety, and that will cost lives.”
