View source for Coastal-Marine Automated Network

{{short description|Meteorological observation network along the coast of the United States}}
{{Unreferenced|date=January 2022}}
The '''Coastal-Marine Automated Network''' ('''C-MAN''') is a [[meteorological]] observation network along the coastal United States.  Consisting of about sixty stations installed on lighthouses, at capes and beaches, on near shore islands, and on offshore platforms, the stations record [[atmospheric pressure]], [[wind]] [[wind direction|direction]], [[wind speed|speed]] and gust, and air [[temperature]]; however, some C-MAN stations are designed to also measure [[sea surface temperature]], water level, [[Ocean surface wave|waves]], [[relative humidity]], [[precipitation (meteorology)|precipitation]], and [[visibility]].  

The network is maintained by the [[National Data Buoy Center]] (NDBC) of the [[National Weather Service]] (NWS), which is part of [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]] (NOAA), and data is ingested into [[numerical weather prediction]] computer models.  It was created in the early 1980s to maintain observations that were about to be discontinued by other programs.  Data is processed and transmitted similarly to the moored [[weather buoy|buoy]] system.

In 2002, C-MAN was added to the [[NOAA Observing System Architecture]] (NOSA).

==See also==
* [[Cabled observatory#List of cabled observatories|List of cabled observatories]]
* [[Shipping Forecast]]

== External links ==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070701051041/http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/cman.php National Data Buoy Center C-MAN site]
* [http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/nndc/struts/results?op_0=eq&v_0=National%20Weather%20Service-Coastal-Marine%20Automated%20Network%20&op_1=l&v_1=&t=400239&s=51&d=307&d=305&d=301&d=303&d=416&d=304&d=302&d=320&d=308&no_data=suppress&sourceId=101717 C-MAN on NOSA]{{dead link|date=April 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}

{{Meteorological equipment}}
{{Earth-based meteorological observation}}

[[Category:Meteorological data and networks]]
[[Category:Meteorological instrumentation and equipment]]
[[Category:Oceanographic instrumentation]]

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