Name two common aviation weather reporting networks.

• A. METAR and TAF
• B. ATIS and FIS-B
• C. ASOS and AWOS
• D. NEXRAD and SIGMET

Answer: (C)

Automated surface observing networks provide the steady, real-time weather data that aviation relies on. The two most common ones are ASOS (Automated Surface Observing System) and AWOS (Automated Weather Observing System). Both are automated stations placed at many airports that continuously measure and report core surface weather elements such as wind, visibility, ceiling and sky condition, temperature, dew point, and altimeter setting. These observations feed METARs and other weather products used by pilots and air traffic control for planning and decision-making. Other items mentioned—METAR and TAF—are formats for weather reports and forecasts, not networks; ATIS and FIS-B are broadcast information services; NEXRAD is a radar network and SIGMET is a weather advisory product.