ASPB and CIMSS Weekly Report
[ Archive ]
ASPB AND CIMSS WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK ENDING JULY 19, 2008

IN THE PRESS:

ITEMS FOR THE ADMINISTRATOR:

ITEMS FOR THE ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR:

ITEMS FOR THE OFFICE DIRECTOR, STAR:

CIMSS Scientists Visit the National Hurricane Center: Chris Velden and Derrick Herndon from the Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS) visited the National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami this week. The two scientists provided on-site training on the latest objective satellite-based tropical cyclone intensity estimation techniques, including the Advanced Dvorak Technique, Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit (AMSU)-based algorithms, and the SATellite CONsensus (SATCON) methods. Briefings were given to forecasters and the Scientific Operations Officer on the latest upgrades and performance. In addition, three tropical cyclones were active in the NHC area of responsibility during the visit, and the scientists were able to "shadow" the forecasters during their analysis routines to better understand the process and needs. (C. Velden, CIMSS, 608-262-9168;D. Herndon, CIMSS).

Briefing to NWS on Advanced Geo Soundings: On July 15, S. Ackerman and T. Schmit gave a presentation to the National Weather Service (NWS) SRSST (Satellite Requirements and Solutions Steering Team) on the need for an advanced geo sounder to meet user requirements. The presentation, which is available upon request, briefly covered the science, the need, and the benefits of an advanced geo sounder. (S. Ackerman, CIMSS, 608-263-3647, T. Schmit, E/RA2, 608-263-0291, tim.j.schmit@noaa.gov)

ITEMS FOR THE DIVISION CHIEF, CoRP:

New Version of Image Animation Applet Released: The popular animations applet, AniS, has been updated to a version using the Flash runtime instead of Java. Memory issues with tabbed browsing and long loops were causing problems for users which are avoided with the Flash version. In addition, the look-and-feel are now consistent across all platforms. This software is used by both the National Weather Service (NWS) and NESDIS for their public web sites to show animations of radar and satellite imagery. The software was originally developed as part of the Virtual Institute for Satellite Integration Training (VISIT). (T. Whittaker, CIMSS, 608-262-2759)

Simulated ABI IR Data in AWIPS: As part of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)-R Proving Ground, simulated Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) Infrared (IR) data (from the AWG Proxy Team) has been implemented in Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (AWIPS). These will be used for case studies, for example a Weather Event Simulator so that forecasters can become familiar with band number versus wavelength. A number of CIMSS and SSEC personal helped in this task. (K. Bah, CIMSS, 608-262-4462, J. Gerth, CIMSS, 608-263-4942, J. Sieglaff, CIMSS, 608-265-5357, T. Schmit, E/RA2, 608-263-0291, tim.j.schmit@noaa.gov)

  (Click image to enlarge)

Figure caption: Eight of the simulated ABI IR bands are displayed in the AWIPS (i.e bands 08 through 16).

Satellite Imagery of Okmok Volcanic Plume: The Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS) Satellite Blog (http://cimss.ssec.wisc.edu/goes/blog/archives/694 ) was updated with Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) imagery showing a long volcanic ash plume from the Okmok volcano (which erupted on July 12, 2008 in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska) that was moving across parts of the Pacific Northwest and the north-central US on July 17-18, 2008. GOES visible images and several MODIS "cirrus detection" images were effective at depicting the streaky nature of the volcanic plumes, and at one point indicated that the volcanic plumes had extended beyond the boundary of a Volcanic Ash Significant Meteorological Information (SIGMET) Advisory that was issued on July 18. (S. Bachmeier, CIMSS, 608-263-3958)

  (Click image to enlarge)

Figure caption: An AWIPS image of the MODIS cirrus detection channel, showing the slightly brighter “streaky” volcanic plume signature heading northeastward across Idaho into Montana, beyond the boundary of the yellow Volcanic Ash SIGMET Advisory that was issued on July 18, 2008.

Seminar on Ocean Surface Winds: Li Bi gave a Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS) seminar on "A Two-Season Impact Study of the WindSat and ASCAT Ocean Surface Wind Retrievals in the NCEP Global Data Assimilation System." Ms. Bi is a graduate student in the Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences department. (M. Vasys, CIMSS, 608-263-7435)

Other Meetings and Telecons:

None.

VISITORS:

Seminar: Ulrich Löhnert, from Institute for Geophysics and Meteorology at the University of Cologne, gave a Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS) seminar titled "Multi-instrument retrievals of atmospheric state: the Integrated Profiling Technique Talk #4: Using Passive Microwave and Infrared Observations." (M. Vasys, CIMSS, 608-263-7435)

NEXT WEEK:

LOOKING AHEAD:


Archived Weeklies Page Submit a report item