The International TOVS Working Group (ITWG) is convened as a sub-group of the Radiation Commission of the International Association of Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences (IAMAS) and of the Coordination Group for Meteorological Satellites (CGMS). ITWG continues to organize International TOVS Study Conferences (ITSCs) which have met every 18-24 months since 1983.
Through this forum, operational and research users of TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) data from the NOAA series of polar orbiting satellites and other atmospheric sounding data have exchanged information on methods for extracting information from these data on atmospheric temperature and moisture fields and on the impact of these data in numerical weather prediction and in climate studies. They have also prepared recommendations to guide the directions of future research and to influence relevant programs of WMO and other agencies (NASA, NESDIS, EUMETSAT).