NWS Weather Alerts
Official National Weather Service watches, warnings, and advisories.
What Are NWS Alerts?
NWS alerts are official weather warnings issued by the National Weather Service. These include tornado warnings, severe thunderstorm watches, frost advisories, winter storm warnings, and more.
LuxWX automatically monitors NWS alerts for the geographic area around each of your weather stations and delivers them alongside your custom alerts.
| Custom Alerts | NWS Alerts | |
|---|---|---|
| Source | Your weather station | National Weather Service |
| Customizable | Yes — thresholds, channels, timing | No — delivered as-is |
| Examples | Your frost alert at 34°F | NWS Frost Advisory |
| Trigger | Live station readings | NWS forecasters issue them |
| Setup | You configure per station | Automatic for your area |
What do the severity levels mean?
NWS alerts have three classification axes:
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Severity — Extreme, Severe, Moderate, or Minor. Indicates the potential impact.
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Urgency — Immediate, Expected, or Future. How soon you should take action.
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Certainty — Observed, Likely, or Possible. How confident the NWS is in the event occurring.
How are NWS alerts shown in the app?
NWS alerts appear in your alert feed with a shield icon to distinguish them from your custom alerts. The shield is color-coded by severity (red for extreme/severe, amber for moderate, blue for minor).
Tap an NWS alert to see the full details: description, safety instructions, affected areas, timing, and a link to the original alert on weather.gov.
Do I need to set up NWS alerts?
No. NWS alerts are automatic. LuxWX monitors the NWS for your station's geographic area and delivers relevant alerts without any configuration.
How often does LuxWX check for NWS alerts?
Every 5 minutes. When a new NWS alert is issued for your area, you'll typically see it within minutes.
Will I get push notifications for NWS alerts?
Yes. NWS alerts are delivered as push notifications to the LuxWX iOS app, just like your custom alerts. Make sure notifications are enabled in the app.
Can I disable NWS alerts?
NWS alerts are always shown in your feed. They cannot be individually disabled since they represent official safety information for your area.
What areas do NWS alerts cover?
LuxWX uses the NWS forecast zone for your station's coordinates. This is typically a county-level area. The affected zones are shown in the alert detail view.
I got an NWS alert but my custom alert didn't fire
That's normal. NWS alerts are forecasts issued by meteorologists and may predict conditions that haven't reached your station yet. Your custom alerts trigger on actual readings from your station. Think of NWS alerts as advance warnings and custom alerts as real-time confirmations.