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WXM63: NOAA Weather Radio for Rapid City, South Dakota

WXM63 is the NOAA Weather Radio transmitter at Rapid City (transmitter at Cabot Hill), broadcasting on 162.550 MHz at 1000 watts. It carries the National Weather Service Rapid City office's broadcast and covers 8 counties, each listed below with the SAME code an alert radio needs to wake for that county and stay quiet for the rest.

CallsignWXM63
Frequency162.550 MHz
TransmitterRapid City (transmitter at Cabot Hill), South Dakota
Power1000 watts
Forecast officeNWS Rapid City
StatusNormal (NWS data, July 2026)

Marine radios often label 162.550 MHz as WX1, but WX channel numbers vary by brand - go by the frequency.

Counties WXM63 covers

CountyStateSAME codeNote
CusterSouth Dakota046033
MeadeSouth Dakota046093ALL
MeadeSouth Dakota446093WEST
MeadeSouth Dakota846093SOUTH
PenningtonSouth Dakota046103ALL
PenningtonSouth Dakota446103WEST
PenningtonSouth Dakota546103CENTRAL
PenningtonSouth Dakota646103EAST

A county marked with a note (for example partial coverage) is served for that portion only. Program the six-digit code into your radio's SAME location list - the SAME code guide walks through it, and how alert radios work explains what the radio does with it.

Hearing WXM63

Any receiver that tunes 162.550 MHz FM can listen: scanners, VHF ham radios, marine sets, or a software-defined receiver. What those do not do is wake you at 3 a.m. - for that you want a dedicated radio with SAME alerting, covered in the buyer's guide.

Every South Dakota transmitter, county and SAME code: NOAA Weather Radio in South Dakota. Or look any county up with the finder.

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