That's when the test phase for the new GOES-R satellite should be complete, providing the National Weather Service with an improved tool to track lightning, tornadoes and hurricanes. The current combination of human meteorologists and computer forecast models often means "educated guesses based on the data to derive what the impact might be," said Craig Fugate, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
President Obama will learn about upgrades and new tools that will contribute to more precise hurricane tracking. Funding for FEMA will also be a central issue.
AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File FILE- In this Oct.1, 2015 file photo, Craig Fugate, Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency , right, talks about the status of Hurricane Joaquin as it moves through the eastern Bahamas as Rick Knabb, Director of the National Hurricane Center, left, participate in a media briefing at the National Hurricane Center. The U.S. government is set to release its forecast for how many hurricanes and tropical storms are expected to form over Atlantic and Caribbean waters in the next six months.