A large white globe visible over the treetops in Missouri Research Park is a radome containing weather radar operated by the St. Louis office of the National Weather Service. Officially known as WSR-88D, the radar is part of a weather detection network of 160 radar stations across the United States. The radome is a fiberglass shell that covers and protects a large radar dish 28 feet in diameter and its associated electronics. This radar station collects various types of weather data over parts of Missouri and Illinois. While most of the data collected is within 148 miles of the tower, some data can come from as far as 285 miles away. The St. Louis office is one of 122 forecast offices around the country employing teams of meteorologists and technical staff and operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It provides up-to-the-minute weather and hydrologic observations, forecasts, and warnings to 46 counties in Central and Eastern Missouri as well as Southern Illinois. The National Weather Service is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce. Across the region, people rely daily on this weather and river information, especially during hazardous weather and in livelihoods dependent on weather and water conditions, including farming, aviation, construction, outdoor recreation, barge companies, utilities, and flood-prone property interests.