Research Past Weather at Your Address
By StormAuditor Editorial Team · Published 2026-07-15 · Updated 2026-09-23
Based on public NOAA and National Weather Service records, published under StormAuditor's methodology and data-source standards. Radar-derived hail sizes are estimates unless attributed to a ground report.
Damage-threshold ranges in this article are general guidance synthesized from industry and federal research — IBHS building-performance research, NWS severe criteria, and product standards such as UL 2218 (hail impact resistance) and ASTM D3161/D7158 (shingle wind ratings). Actual performance depends on product rating, age, installation quality, exposure, and impact characteristics — thresholds describe when damage becomes possible, not when it occurs.
Understanding past weather events at a precise location is crucial for property owners, contractors, and researchers. StormAuditor provides comprehensive historical weather reports to help you investigate hail, wind, and severe weather occurrences.
Introduction
When a property is damaged, one step is key. You need to pin down the weather at that exact place on a specific date. That holds whether you are an owner, contractor, insurance adjuster, or legal professional. Weather history gives valuable context. StormAuditor gathers detailed weather data for any U.S. address and date, covering severe thunderstorms, hail, and strong winds.
What Happened: Weather Events at Your Address
To find out what happened at an address, we look at several key signs:
- Severe Thunderstorm Warnings: The National Weather Service (NWS) issues these when severe weather is about to happen. A severe thunderstorm has hail 1.00 inch (quarter size) or larger, gusts of 58 mph (50 knots) or more, or a tornado. If your property was inside a warning area, it was in an area at risk for these conditions.
- Hail: Hail size can vary a lot, even across small areas. StormAuditor uses advanced radar products to estimate hail size at your location. The official severe hail size is 1.00 inch (quarter size). "Significant severe" hail is 2.00 inches (hen egg) or larger. For reference:
- 1.00 inch: Quarter
- 1.75 inch: Golf ball
- 2.00 inch: Hen egg
- 2.75 inch: Baseball
- Wind gusts: Strong winds from thunderstorms or other weather can do significant damage. The NWS severe wind level is 58 mph. Winds of 70 mph are damaging. Winds of 65 to 85 mph match the estimated range of an EF0 tornado. StormAuditor estimates the peak gusts at your location.
Together, these rebuild the weather at an address on a specific date.
How StormAuditor Estimates It
StormAuditor draws on several trusted data sources and careful methods.
Hail Estimation (SAHE-2)
Our Storm Auditor Hail Estimate v2 (SAHE-2) relies mainly on MRMS MESH (Maximum Estimated Size of Hail). This radar product gives high-resolution hail swaths and estimates hail size in fine detail.
- Our main sign is the MESH estimate for the ~1-km radar cell your property sits in.
- SPC (Storm Prediction Center) reports from trained spotters and NWS severe thunderstorm warnings back up and add to the estimate.
- We report these as ESTIMATES, not direct measurements, because radar has limits.
Wind Estimation (SAWE-2)
Our Storm Auditor Wind Estimate (SAWE-2) combines several data points:
- We start from the NOAA URMA grid, the analysis of record, for daily peak gusts at your address. HRRR is the fallback.
- We then correct it with gusts measured at nearby ASOS/AWOS stations and NWS Local Storm Reports marked as measured.
- NWS warnings and SPC reports from people are shown alongside as context.
Strong winds can be very local. Station data may not fully capture microbursts between stations.
"At location" and nearby
"At location" means the address falls inside a warning area, or inside the radar cell of a hail swath. If there is no "at location" data, we may show nearby distances (1 mile, 3 miles, 10 miles) for context. All our outputs are ESTIMATES, not direct measurements.
Limitations
Know the limits of the data:
- Radar accuracy: Radar hail estimates (MESH) can under-estimate hail size, mainly with wet hail. They can over-estimate in very strong reflectivity cores. They are estimates from radar signals, not direct measurements.
- Wind observations: Station readings are point measurements. They may miss very local, intense wind like microbursts between stations. The real peak gust at a property can differ from station values.
- Warning areas: An NWS Severe Thunderstorm Warning covers a set AREA for a set TIME window. A property inside one was under a WARNING. That does not prove it got the peak severe conditions (such as 1.00" hail or 58 mph winds). It means conditions favored such events.
- No causation: StormAuditor gives weather context. We do not assess what caused damage. That takes an on-site inspection by qualified professionals, such as engineers or adjusters.
Related StormAuditor Tools
Explore our tools for your own weather research:
- Property-level historical weather report
- State-wide Wind Explorer
- State-wide Hail Explorer
- Date of Loss (DOL) research workflow
- Our full methodology and data sources
- View a sample StormAuditor report
FAQ
Q: What is the difference between a weather warning and a weather watch?
A: A watch means conditions favor severe weather in or near the watch area. A warning means severe weather is happening, about to happen, or has been seen. Act right away to protect life and property.
Q: How accurate are StormAuditor's hail size estimates?
A: They come mainly from MRMS MESH, an advanced radar product. They are very detailed, but they are estimates from radar signals, not direct measurements. Radar has limits. It may under-estimate wet hail or over-estimate in very strong reflectivity cores. We present the best available data, backed by human reports and NWS warnings, but they are still estimates.
Q: Can StormAuditor tell me if a storm damaged my property?
A: No. StormAuditor gives weather data and estimates for a place and date. We do not assess property damage or decide its cause. Our reports give valuable context to meteorologists, adjusters, contractors, and owners. Only an on-site inspection by qualified professionals can find the cause and extent of damage.
Q: What does "significant severe" mean for hail and wind?
A: In NWS terms, "significant severe" means events stronger than the regular severe criteria. For hail, that is 2.00 inches (hen egg size) or larger. For wind, it is gusts of 75 mph or more. An EF2+ tornado also counts as significant severe.
Q: Where does StormAuditor get its weather data?
A: From trusted sources: NOAA's National Weather Service (NWS) for warnings, the SPC (Storm Prediction Center) for storm reports, IEM (Iowa Environmental Mesonet) archives, and the NCEI Storm Events Database. We also use MRMS MESH via Hail Explorer for radar hail, and NOAA ASOS/AWOS station records and the URMA analysis for daily conditions. See our Data Sources page for more.