NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), headquartered in Asheville, N.C., has been severely impacted by Hurricane Helene. NCEI has confirmed that all of its employees and staff have been accounted for, and its data holdings — including its paper and film records — are safe. NCEI’s broadband internet provider has limited functionality, and there is no definitive timeline for when it will be fully operational.

NCEI maintains one of the most significant archives on Earth, with comprehensive oceanic, atmospheric and geophysical data dating back to the 1700s. NCEI archives over 229 terabytes of data each month from over 130 observing platforms, and the majority of these data stewardship services are currently unavailable due to the impacts of Helene. 

All archived data at NCEI is currently inaccessible, and limited new data is being ingested. We are working with our partners to minimize the risk of any potential data loss; however, Helene has made many key products and services unavailable at this time.

Products impacted include access to NCEI’s past weather and climate data. NCEI’s monthly State of the Climate reports and data will be be delayed until services are restored, which will have implications for both the public and private sectors, including agriculture, energy, retail, reinsurance, transportation and media. 

These reports and data rely on expert analysis from a team of dedicated staff, who are all personally impacted by the event. The September 2024 U.S. and global climate reports, originally scheduled to be released on October 8 and 10 respectively, will be delayed. At this time, we do not have more specifics on when they might be available.

NCEI and its staff are members of the Southern Appalachian communities that continue to recover from the event. NOAA continues to support Federal relief efforts around the devastation of Hurricane Helene, and is committed to continuing to support impacted communities now and in the future.

Climate, weather, and water affect all life on our ocean planet. NOAA’s mission is to understand and predict our changing environment, from the deep sea to outer space, and to manage and conserve America’s coastal and marine resources.