On the Weather Channel, what to the 5 digits after "Local Weather" mean? (e.g. "Local Weather 12345)

Question

I'm talking about the area at the very bottom of the screen that has a black background with white text. It will say "Local Weather 12345" (or whatever the code is for your locality) but I don't know if it's some kind of gobbledygook unique to weather maps, or my chances of getting hit by lightning divided by the square root of 'e' or what. I've asked people this and gotten everything from shrugs to "It's your ZIP code", which I know is wrong. If anyone can tell me what these digits mean (and what practical use they are) I would be greatly appreciative.

Thanks very much.

--Scott

Answer 1

It probably just a code the Weather Channel uses to refer to certain areas. It's definitely not a zip code because when my code comes up, it's not a zip code for anywhere in my area. You can try contacting the Weather Channel and ask them.

Answer 2

It's your most local metropolitan zip code.  For instance Nashville 37214