The Weather Channel 2014. Aside from location-based weather forecast information, the apps provided radar maps, and tropical and seasonal updates, as well as social media related functions that track weather-related Twitter messages and allow users to send Facebook friends severe weather alerts. The channel also disseminated severe weather information, and photos and videos submitted by meteorologists and viewers, on its Twitter feed (@TWCBreaking, which also served as a hashtag usable for posts). In July 2012, The Weather Company (former owner of The Weather Channel) purchased competing weather website Weather Underground. While The Weather Channel already had success with its own mobile apps, it
History of The Weather Channel special contributor for TWC, providing segments from his frequent travels to weather-impacted locales. Later in 2011, the Intellistar 2, the first STAR unit capable of generating high definition graphics, began to be gradually rolled out to cable providers across the country. The Intellistar 2 is strictly used to generate data and graphics for the "Local on the 8s" segments seen on the high definition feed, while the first-generation Intellistar remains in use to provide weather information on The Weather Channel's standard definition feed. The Weather Channel marked the 30th anniversary of its launch in May 2012. In August 2012, former