NAM for Alaska
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I noticed that the North American Model (NAM), Alaska version, for 60 hours is missing from the available model forecast options. Has something changed?
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@akwx The reason why NAM has been removed is because this model as a whole will be shutting down and decommissioned by the NOAA next week. The RRFS model will be replacing NAM, though I am unsure if Windy devs has any plans to add this model at this time. The HRRR continues to be operational and on Windy. The HDRPS model may also suit your needs as well as it also covers parts of Alaska. I hope this serves you well.
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Hi, yes, we will add RRFS. We are already downloading the data and in one of the next releases, it should become available.
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The NAM, as well as several other legacy models are being retired by NOAA in favour of a new model called RRFS. It was supposed to replace them on October 14th, but has since been pushed back to November 3rd.
https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf_2026/scn26-048_Updated_RRFS_and_REFS_Implementation_aae.pdf
https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf_2026/scn26-47_Updated_Retirement_of_NAM_SREF_HREF_HiresW_NAM_MOS_aac.pdf
https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf_2026/scn26-89_RRFS_Downstream.pdfFor now I recommend using HRRR until Windy implements RRFS.
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I'm a little confused about the timing of the NAM removal.
According to NOAA's updated October 2 Service Change Notices, NAM is not being retired until November 3, 2026. NOAA specifically states that RRFS implementation and retirement of the legacy models will occur on the same day.
Windy has already removed NAM, but RRFS isn't yet available in Windy. Doesn't that potentially leave users without either model for nearly a month?
This is particularly significant for users in Hawaii. I've relied on the 3 km NAM Hawaii nest for years because its higher resolution and treatment of our mountainous terrain can make it considerably more useful than the global models for local wind and weather. HRRR is useful, but it isn't necessarily a direct replacement for that use case.
Since NOAA is continuing to produce NAM until November 3, would it be possible to restore NAM until RRFS is actually available in Windy? Ideally the transition would simply be NAM → RRFS without a gap in coverage.
I'm looking forward to RRFS and expect it will ultimately be an improvement. My concern is simply losing NAM before its replacement is available to us.
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@cohibafan I don't work for the dev team, so I have no idea how far along the process is to implement RRFS, however according to @selverob comment, Windy is already downloading the data and it should become available in one of the upcoming releases.
Unfortunately there is no HRRR Hawaii domain. However, the NAM model is still available on the Windy mobile apps, because new changes are often delayed compared to the web version. So for now, until RRFS is implemented, I can only recommend either using the mobile apps to access NAM, or use alternate models on the web version.
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@TheRadarGuy Thank you for clarifying that NAM is still available on the mobile apps. That's helpful, particularly here in Hawaii, where HRRR isn't an alternative.
What I'm still struggling to understand is why NAM was removed from the web version before RRFS was ready to replace it.
My understanding is that NOAA has postponed NAM's retirement until November 3, so the data should remain available for several more weeks. Meanwhile, RRFS is still being integrated into Windy, with no confirmed release date.
Wouldn't it make more sense to retain NAM on the web until RRFS is actually available? Removing a functioning forecast model before its replacement is ready seems to create an unnecessary gap, particularly for Hawaii users who depend on its high-resolution terrain modeling.
I realize you're not part of the development team, and I appreciate your help. Perhaps someone from that team could explain the reasoning behind the decision or consider temporarily restoring NAM until RRFS is released.
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