History is a puzzle made of many intricate pieces. When put together, they tell the stories of our past and can help us better foresee our future.

For nearly two centuries, US Navy sailors have recorded daily weather and ocean data into logbooks as they crisscrossed oceans around the world.

Preserved at the National Archives, these logbooks are brimming with scattered puzzle pieces waiting to be digitally assembled.

The first step in digitization is to photograph every logbook page by page and publish these images online.

Since reading centuries-old handwriting can be difficult for computers we need citizen scientists to decode and convert these records into a format that computers can understand. Once digitized we can use the world's most powerful supercomputers to re-analyze every weather and ocean observation ever made.

These puzzle pieces, each snapped into its proper time and place, gradually reveal a giant picture. As citizen scientists add more historical observations, experts will use them to identify climate patterns and help foresee potential risks and opportunities that could improve the lives of people around the world.

Visit www.archivesfoundation.org/digitalweather to learn more.