Journal: Weather and Forecasting
Early online release: March 27
Title: Forecaster Use and Evaluation of Real-Time 3DVAR Analyses during Severe Thunderstorm and Tornado Warning Operations in the Hazardous Weather Testbed
Authors: Kristin M. Calhoun,* Travis M. Smith, and Darrel M. Kingfield, Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma, NOAA/OAR National Severe Storms Laboratory, Norman, Oklahoma, Jidong Gao and David J. Stensrud NOAA/OAR National Severe Storms Laboratory, Norman, Oklahoma
Summary: A weather-adaptive three-dimensional data assimilation (3DVAR) system was included in the NOAA Hazardous Weather Testbed as a first step towards introducing Warn-on-Forecast initiatives into operations. NWS forecasters were asked to incorporate the data in conjunction with single-radar and multi-sensor products in the Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (AWIPS) as part of their warning-decision process for real-time events across the United States.
Important Conclusions: Forecasters found the updraft, vertical vorticity, and storm-top divergence products the most useful for storm interrogation and quickly visualizing storm trends, often using these tools to increase the confidence in a warning decision and/or issue the warning slightly earlier. Blending data from multiple radars was extremely useful to forecasters rather than having to analyze multiple radars separately. The largest hurdle for realtime use of 3DVAR or similar data assimilation products by forecasters is the data latency, as even 4-6 minutes reduces the utility of the products when new radar scans are available.
Significance: The eventual goal of this real-time 3DVAR system is to help meteorologists better track severe weather events and eventually provide better warning information to the public, ultimately saving lives and reducing property damage.
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Journal: Bulletin of the AMS
Online release: April 2, 2014
Title: ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCES AND RELATED RESEARCH: Current Systems, Emerging Technology, and Future Needs
Authors: HOWARD B. BLUESTEIN 1, ROBERT M. RAUBER , DONALD W. BURGESS , BRUCE ALBRECHT , SCOTT M. ELLIS , YVETTE P. RICHARDSON , DAVID P. JORGENSEN , STEPHEN J. FRASIER , PHILLIP CHILSON , ROBERT D. PALMER , SANDRA E. YUTER , WEN-CHAU LEE , DAVID C. DOWELL , PAUL L. SMITH , PAUL M. MARKOWSKI , KATJA FRIEDRICH , and TAMMY M. WECKWERTH
Summary: To assist the National Science Foundation in meeting the needs of the community of scientists by providing them with the instrumentation and platforms necessary to conduct their research successfully, a meeting was held in late Nov. 2012 with the purpose of defining the problems of the next generation that will require radar technologies and determining the suite of radars best suited to help solve these problems.
Important Conclusions: The research community recommended polarimetric radars, S-band radars with Bragg-scattering radars, airborne radars, diverse radar platforms at several wavelengths, VHF profiling systems, radars in data sparse areas, deployable networks of radars, phased-array radar technology, better software tools for radar display and analysis, availability of radar instrumentation for the research community, educational support, and an increase computer resources. Radar developers need to think far ahead (~50 years). What is useful now might quickly become old technology.
Significance: The emerging radar technologies that will be most helpful in answering the key scientific questions are identified.