The award, the first presented in Kentucky, recognizes Berea College is the oldest continuously operating site collecting meteorological data in the NWS statewide volunteer network. The College joined the Cooperative Observing Program Feb. 1, 1901.

"Berea College can be very proud of their outstanding record as a Cooperative Weather Station for the past 100+ years," said Bob Bonack, program administrator for the NWS Southern Region based in Kansas City.
The National Weather Service presents only about five 100 Year Awards annually.

Larry Datillo, Central Kentucky and Southern Indiana Data Acquisition Program Manager, along with other officials with the NWS office in Louisville, will present the award to the College. Accepting the award for Berea will be Dr. Amer Lahamer, acting-chair of Berea's physics department; Jacqueline Price, Berea student who currently maintains the weather station, and physics professor Smith T. Powell, in charge of the weather observation program at Berea since 1970.

Berea is one of 14 long-term Cooperative Weather Stations of 213 in Kentucky. Several stations opened in the late 1880s, but Berea is the oldest continuously operating site. Eight of the 14 stations, including Berea, are also part of the Historical Climate Network (HCN), signifying they have been in existence at least 80 years and have provided high quality data in a stable environment, making them the data source of choice for climate change research.

Using equipment provided and maintained by the NWS, Berea records daily rainfall; minimum and maximum air temperature, humidity and soil temperatures; and any unusual conditions such as damaging wind, lightning, fog, etc. At least two earthquakes have also been recorded in the past 30 years. The data is reported daily by telephone to the National Weather Service office in Louisville and more detailed data is reported monthly. In addition to reporting to the NWS, Berea provides data to two local companies who need the information to monitor manufacturing conditions. The data is also provided to the U.S. Forest Service for fire prevention purposes, and occasionally to researchers.

Powell, a member of the physics faculty for more than 30 years, maintained the weather station briefly as a student at Berea from 1957-1961. In addition to meteorological data, Powell recalls also reporting the amount of radioactive material in the atmosphere due to testing of nuclear weaponry at the time, some of which was sent to Oak Ridge National Laboratory each week for analysis. When Powell returned to Berea as a professor in 1970, data on the radioactive content of the atmosphere was no longer collected as atmospheric testing of nuclear devices had been banned.

The Cooperative Observing Program is an extensive network of more than 11,700 volunteer weather observers throughout the U.S. The program's mission today is to provide observational meteorological data required to define the climate of the U.S. and to help measure long-term climate changes; and to provide observational meteorological data in near-real time to support forecast, warning and a variety of other NWS public service programs.

The first extensive network of observing stations was established in the 1890's as a result of an act of congress in 1890 that established the Weather Bureau (now the NWS). Long before the establishment of these organized networks however, weather data was being collected and shared by volunteers, starting in the 1640s. Some of the most notable volunteer observers from history include George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin.