page_title: WZZM
section_title: Weatherball
hierarchical_section_title: WZZM / News operation / Weather / Weatherball
caption_attribution_description: English: Picture taken by me for VCS on November 11, 2005.
context_page_description: WZZM, virtual and VHF digital channel 13, is an ABC-affiliated television station licensed to Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States and serving the Grand Rapids–Kalamazoo–Battle Creek television market. The station is owned by Tegna Inc. WZZM's studios are located on 3 Mile Road NW in Walker, and its transmitter is located in Grant, Michigan.
  The station's transmitter is about 40 miles north of other stations in the Grand Rapids market, and its over-the-air signal is unavailable in the market's two other major cities as a result. Since April 2009, however, WZZM has been available on most cable providers in Southwest Michigan, even though Battle Creek-based WOTV serves as the ABC affiliate for that part of the Grand Rapids market. Until then, viewers outside of the reach of WZZM's signal relied on out-of-market stations from South Bend, Indiana or Lansing to view syndicated programs carried by WZZM.
context_section_description: The original weatherball was constructed in 1967 and perched on top of the Michigan National Bank building in downtown Grand Rapids. The colors it displayed were representative of the forthcoming weather.  A poem was written about the weatherball's colors:
  Weatherball red, warmer weather ahead.
  Weatherball blue, cooler weather in view.
  Weatherball green, no change foreseen.
  Colors blinking bright, rain or snow in sight.
  However, due to questions about its stability, it was removed in 1987, after twenty years of existence. WZZM located the weatherball, which had resided in a Kalamazoo junkyard since its removal, and purchased it in 1999. In 2002, plans were announced to refurbish the stainless steel ball and to add new neon lights. The weatherball was perched on a 100-foot (30 m) monopole at WZZM's studios and was lit on May 7, 2003. It is visible from both Interstate 96 and US 131, the two major freeways in the area.
  Shortly after the reintroduction of the WZZM 13 Weatherball, a contest was held where viewers submitted video recordings of songs to coincide with its meanings. The winner chosen had their song appear on a new commercial that aired to inform viewers on the significance of the colors. The winners were Dale Ray Schumaker and Allison Rae Schumaker of Holland with their jingle, "Know Before You Go". "DJ Dale" Schumaker and Allison Rae Schumaker are prominent hit songwriters.
  On June 5, 2008, the Weatherball was struck by lightning for the first time in its history. The lightning scrambled the electronic components of the Weatherball, causing it to glow in a rainbow of colors, and it had to be turned off temporarily for repairs as a result. The station also has a costumed character mascot of the Weatherball named "Blinkie". A similar weatherball is also located on the Citizen's Bank building in Flint. Tegna sister station and fellow ABC affiliate KXTV in Sacramento, California, also owns a weather beacon.
caption: The WZZM 13 Weatherball.
exif: {}