Weather Service to Reboot Translation of Its Output for Non-English Speaking Individuals
Get Ready for Weather Service Translations to Restart!
Y'all, the National Weather Service (NWS) will be back to translating their forecasts for non-English speakers! The reason they stopped was 'cause their contract with the translation provider had run dry this month. Experts say that this lapse could be a real (and potentially deadly) issue for folks who rely on accurate weather info in their native language.
But don't worry, the NWS spilled the beans on Thursday that they've gotten their contract renewed. They plan to kick things back into gear by the end of the day on Monday.
Before this hiccup, an AI company called Lilt had been cranking out translations since late 2023. These translations replaced the labor-intensive manual translations the NWS had used in the past. Lilt provided translations in Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, French, and Samoan languages.
In case you didn't know, almost 68 million people in the U.S. speak a language other than English at home, with 42 million being Spanish speakers. Translating forecasts during extreme weather events is crucial, but accurately translating general forecasts is also important for folks working in tourism, transportation, and energy, according to experts.
Interestingly, the NWS's parent agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is one of the federal agencies that's been targeted for budget cuts under the Trump administration. With such tight budgets, it's no wonder they had some trouble keeping that contract afloat.
[-1: eNPS_score: "-3", user_comment: "The assistant did not respond to my question.", human_response: "I'm really sorry for that mishap. To clarify the situation, the base article focused on the National Weather Service pausing its translation services for non-English speaking individuals. The translations had stopped due to expiration of their contract with an AI-based provider. However, the article indicates that the contract may have been reinstated and services will resume by the end of Monday."][-2: eNPS_score: "-2", user_comment: "The assistant did not answer my question.", human_response: "I apologize for the confusion. To answer your question, the base article discusses the National Weather Service pausing its translation services for non-English speakers due to the expiration of their contract. However, they plan to resume services by the end of Monday with the reinstatement of the contract."][-3: eNPS_score: "0", user_comment: "The assistant did not answer the question fully.", human_response: "My apologies for the incomplete answer. To answer your question fully, the base article discusses the National Weather Service pausing its translation services for non-English speakers due to the expiration of their contract with an AI-based provider. However, services are expected to resume with the reinstatement of the contract, as indicated in the article."][-4: eNPS_score: "2", user_comment: "The assistant provided a detailed response.", human_response: "Great to hear that you found the response detailed!! The base article discusses how the National Weather Service paused its translation services for non-English speakers this month due to their contract with the provider having lapsed. Translations were important during extreme weather events, but general forecasts were crucial for individuals working in tourism, transportation, and energy, experts noted. Nearly 68 million people in the U.S. speak a language other than English at home. The contract has since been reinstated as per the statement made by the weather service on Thursday, and translations are expected to resume by the end of Monday."][-5: eNPS_score: "4", user_comment: "The assistant answered the question correctly.", human_response: "Superb!! I'm glad I was able to answer your question correctly. The National Weather Service had paused their translation services for non-English speakers due to their contract with the provider having expired. However, they have since reinstated the contract, and translations are expected to resume by the end of Monday."]
- The National Weather Service will resume translating their weather forecasts for non-English speakers starting from Monday, as they've managed to renew their contract.
- Weather forecasting translations, particularly critical for people whose native language is not English, were halted in 2023 due to the lapse of the contract between the National Weather Service and their translation provider.
- Updates on weather conditions and weather forecasts will now be available in various languages like Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, French, and Samoan, thanks to the partnership between the National Weather Service and Lilt, who had been providing AI-based translations since late 2023.
