Geodata-Fueled Map Relates Storms To Energy Facilities

A new interactive map for tracking storms in real time, released on July 9 by the Energy Information Administration, aggregates some 30 sets of geodata from a wide range of agencies and organizations -- all in an effort to monitor the effect such storms could have on critical energy infrastructure.

The map, which launched as Tropical Storm Chantal was heading toward Florida, uses ESRI mapping software to layer relevant information such as recent storm paths, current wind patterns and all manner of energy infrastructure -- everything from pipelines and offshore oil rigs to wind farms and nuclear power plants.

The map uses real-time feeds from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to track storms and pulls infrastructure data from the departments of Commerce, Interior, Labor and Transportation, in addition to data from EIA and other Energy Department sources.