Regional and Mesoscale Meteorology Branch

00:00:00:06 – 00:00:29:01
Speaker 1
Welcome to today’s visit, satellite chat. And today we have a special guest, we online from, SBC, who is the, hazard head of hazardous Weather testbed. Satellite liaison down there in, Norman, Oklahoma. And he’s going to talk about, the goes our proving ground portion of the spring experiment coming up at this, here very soon and Hazardous Weather testbed, the plans in line for that.

00:00:29:01 – 00:00:42:21
Speaker 1
So we thank Bill for his participation, and we’ll take about a half hour, and then we’ll have some, additional, discussion and questions here as well. So with that, I’ll let Bill take it away. All right. Thanks.

00:00:42:23 – 00:01:06:27
Speaker 2
And I want to just start by pointing out that this is a tentative plan. So it is subject to change, maybe at least slightly. But first I want to talk about just generally, what is the hazardous weather testbed for those who may not be familiar, it’s, located at Norman, at the National Weather Center. It’s jointly managed by SSL, SPC, and enormous WAFL and houses several experiments throughout the year.

00:01:06:29 – 00:01:38:03
Speaker 2
To allow researchers and, forecasters to come together to evaluate, new research concepts, tools, products, simulated operational setting. They equation, for the most part made up of two parts the who are interested in improving shorter range warning services. While the EFP is focused more on longer range forecasting and looking at all high risk models and ensembles, the goals are proving ground.

00:01:38:03 – 00:02:06:12
Speaker 2
That’s been part of, for the past several years. And it exists, to provide a pre operational demonstration of their satellite based products and capabilities that will be available with next generation Goes-r, satellite system. The early exposure. It’s really good for, right early exposure help helps forecaster become familiar with Goes-r capabilities and products prior to launch.

00:02:06:14 – 00:02:43:14
Speaker 2
But also the feedback received is really helpful in the continued development of these products. And of course, the spray experiment is, has been around every spring for several years. And it, this allows for, the testing of new technology and products during the height of the severe weather season. So this year, there’s it’s kind of a little different where there’s going to be multiple kind of, isolated projects involved in the AWP derby, a mass experiment in, in April, just looking at everybody’s products.

00:02:43:16 – 00:03:06:08
Speaker 2
The whole experiment will be isolated. During May, the, Earth Network’s total lightning experiment will be in July. And, there will be a hydro experiment, likely in July as well. Then the big the main spray experiment will be the first three weeks of May and the first week in June. And that is where the, goes are proving ground participates, and that’s where it goes.

00:03:06:08 – 00:03:34:24
Speaker 2
Our program activities will be concentrated this year. And then also there’s the Experimental Forecast program, which will run through May. And the first week in June. So looking closer at the big spray experiment this year, the projects involved will be the Goes-r convective products. Lightning jump algorithm and floating high resolution water model. And you can see that, Goes-r is one of the main projects in this experiment.

00:03:34:24 – 00:03:55:29
Speaker 2
Out of all three. So there will be a heavy focus on those Goes-r products. There will be four participants per week. Three of those will be National Weather Service and one broadcast meteorologist, which is new this year. And that’s part of the Proving Grounds goal of bringing the broadcast community more into, proving ground activities and getting their feedback.

00:03:56:02 – 00:04:21:15
Speaker 2
It’ll be a simulated morning operational environment, and using able to training will be in the form of narrated, articulate PowerPoints to be sent to forecasters before their arrival to Norman, and also will, provide forecasts or participants with quick guides to, be able to reference during the experiment. Feedback will be in the form of surveys, a live blog, a discussion during operations, and daily debriefs.

00:04:21:18 – 00:04:43:26
Speaker 2
And finally, we’ll end each week with the tales from the Test Bed, which is a, a for a webinar aired every Friday. During the experiment where participants, can talk about the products and ideas they used during the week and product developers and other national weather Service entities can call in and, hear about what’s going on.

00:04:43:28 – 00:05:08:16
Speaker 2
So I take note that Jeff Campbell, that Tony here, question about the participants. So where are you guys at in terms of, getting getting name that we, we, we have begun evaluating the applications and I think we’re going to talk next week. We’re going to select participants next week, I believe. Okay. Fair weather. Yeah.

00:05:08:16 – 00:05:28:17
Speaker 2
That’s right. I mean, there isn’t that much time for our but I have a big list. There’s, quite a lot. All right. So if you, you don’t have a shortage of request at this point? I don’t think so. But if there’s still people interested, well. Oh. Yeah. What is different this year, though, is the broadcast community.

00:05:28:19 – 00:05:55:13
Speaker 2
How is that part of it going along in terms of that? Doesn’t it? Yeah, that’s a separate poll okay. And I believe we’ll be selecting those fairly shortly to. Oh right. Okay. So now Thomas, what goes are is that kind of leading that. Oh okay. So a typical day, this year in the spring experiment will be similar to previous years, eight hour shifts each day.

00:05:55:15 – 00:06:16:20
Speaker 2
Monday, I’ll start out one by Tuesday through Thursday. We’ll be flexible with the start time. And we hope to start a little earlier than in years past to allow forecasters to actually get the best used out of many of these skills, our products, because they are effective before convection initiates, and then identifying where you’re most likely to have convection and severe weather.

00:06:16:23 – 00:06:44:15
Speaker 2
So we want to start before forecasters actually get into warning mode. And in terms of selecting what CWA will look at, well, and what time we’ll start, will collaborate with the EFP and SPC, how it does to decide where and when would be best to start. So now we’ll start looking at the products that I’ll be demonstrating in the AWP this year.

00:06:44:17 – 00:07:14:19
Speaker 2
I’ll start out by kind of bill. Yeah. This is a column from a homemade jam from, gas is the FRB, in the project involved? Variational Labs will be participating. I have been, sending emails corresponding with Travis Smith and Gabe Garfield. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Early on, I think. I don’t know if we were hearing from you guys or service, we were sure if you would participate.

00:07:14:19 – 00:07:41:20
Speaker 2
So it wasn’t on the official announcement, but okay, because, the email from, Gabe last week we were there and, the, the floating domain issue I have I’m still waiting for Travis. To me, is the Travis as to whether we can provide that floating high rate domain. And then we said that that that’s already in our plan.

00:07:41:20 – 00:08:09:08
Speaker 2
And we also have other, fixed domain similar to last year. That’s either one kilometer covers mainly the Oklahoma. And then there’s a little bit surrounding area and also three kilometers later be a bigger domain in that same area as well. Okay. We also have a surface analysis for the colonies domain. All right. Very good okay. So I, I can send you some details for, for future references.

00:08:09:10 – 00:08:39:27
Speaker 2
Sure. Yeah. Okay. So no, my focus is more on the goes-r side of things. Okay. Nice for me to see that too. Okay. Thank you. Yep. So in terms of goals, our products being demonstrated, we’ll demonstrate the, synthetic satellite imagery again this year. And this really has, two advantages. For one, it it’s a way for forecasters to, check model performance, but also it’s a way for forecasters to get familiar with, various bands that will be available at Goes-r.

00:08:39:29 – 00:09:14:12
Speaker 2
This year, we’ll be, showing them in a long way by our band, three water vapor bands and the split window difference. To get an idea of how, forecasters might interpret those different wavelengths. Imagery and different products. And so this, will be new. Secondly, we’ll be demonstrating the near test, system. Again, this is a quick update of Lagrangian trajectory model that takes advantage of the other utilized satellite temperature and moisture regime travel data and projects them forward through space and time out to nine hours.

00:09:14:14 – 00:09:42:03
Speaker 2
Products provide a one layer p.w theta S 88 difference, which is a stability parameter. These observation based forecasts have been shown to help forecasters to identify where convection is more or less likely to occur and thrive in the near future. And it really does. Well, I picking up a dataset, retrieval data, as well as picking up by moisture boundaries and extremes and the actual model, preserves those boundaries of extremes quite well.

00:09:42:03 – 00:10:11:07
Speaker 2
And it’s forecasts new this year. I want to also show the forecast forecaster Nir Kast analysis, because it is very important, to look at the analysis and know, how we’ve come up to the current thermodynamic state and it goes our era, this nircam system will utilize and go. So our baseline product, legacy temperature and moisture profiles and a little different from last year, we now have a combined goes east and west near Casper product.

00:10:11:10 – 00:10:40:05
Speaker 2
But I’m also bringing in the Goes east that we took and Gulf soundings and goes west of civic soundings. So we have more of a broader view. And you can see things like golf moisture return, into the central United States. We’ll be showing you University of Alabama Huntsville’s convective initiation, product. Again, this product is giving the probability that a cloud object will develop a 35 year musical that has seen first hand sea level lead.

00:10:40:06 – 00:11:11:19
Speaker 2
Time for this product is typically, 0 to 2 hours before convection initiates. And, the algorithm is using a series of NWP fields and static and temporal gross fields and the Goes-r era. This product will certainly, take advantage of the high resolution Goes-r API. Approved from last year. This product, has improved detection of convective initiation a and cirrus detection of cumulus clouds at night.

00:11:11:21 – 00:11:49:29
Speaker 2
And also they have increased the validation database to hopefully improve c-i proud abilities, especially in the often noisy, western United States. New to the spring spirit, this year will be NWS severe probabilities product. This product is another. It’s a statistical model which merges multiple data sets, from NWP of goals and radar. And what it’s giving you is the probability of severe weather in the next 60 minutes for a given storm reference to a radar object.

00:11:50:02 – 00:12:13:07
Speaker 2
And what they want to look at is an unobtrusive overlay and warning operations. So you would, overlay this product on their radar fields, and we want to test not only how the forecasters like this product, but, what best way to visualize this product? And once again, in the Goes-r era, the algorithm will take advantage of the high resolution data.

00:12:13:09 – 00:12:36:18
Speaker 2
And also as we move forward with these, experiments, they’ll look to add, new fields to help improve the algorithm. Training forward. We’ll also be looking at the overshooting time detection algorithm again, for the first time in a couple of years. And this is due to the national centers have been evaluating this product and really have been finding errors.

00:12:36:18 – 00:13:06:01
Speaker 2
So we want to take what we’ve learned from those evaluations and now apply them to the, WFO side of things. This products highlighting locations of overshooting tops, which often do coincide with the occurrence of severe weather. But we found it to be especially useful to look at trends and overshooting tops, to give us information about mature convective evolution, where you’re consistently producing a strong updraft and potentially where areas of convection are starting to weaken.

00:13:06:03 – 00:13:51:20
Speaker 2
Of course, it is especially useful at night and where radar coverage is limited, but we found that it’s, does indeed help with situational awareness. Subtypes confirming what the forecaster already know. It’s giving them, confidence in other observing systems, which they do like finally. Well once again be looking at total lighting and the pseudo GLM product, as a way to really help forecasters prepare for the Goes-r geostationary Lightning Mapper, which will provide, sub radar for disc or total lightning data, showing support for, those stringing this product also really helps forecasters to become become familiar with the advantages of total lightning.

00:13:51:22 – 00:14:20:03
Speaker 2
You can see from this graph that it provides a lot more information, including lightning up information that you want to see. And, just CGA data where there’s this product and, lightning mapping arrays across the U.S. and you can see here a map of the total Lightning network will be using hopefully ten different networks with the PGL up during the experiment this year across a variety of regions.

00:14:20:05 – 00:14:43:15
Speaker 2
And the final product will be demonstrating to forecasters and the viewers. Here is, a tracking tool. Last year this was just available to track total lightning data. But this year we’ll be able to also look at, tracking radar sets and satellite fields and model data. This product has been developed and refined based on heavily based on forecaster feedback.

00:14:43:17 – 00:15:18:29
Speaker 2
And it allows the forecaster to manually, track objects. And it generates a time series, plot in real time. So we’re really excited to look at trends in other fields this year, such as higher brightness time and turn, reflectivity and lightning, and compare those fields to see if we can see any interesting patterns. So this year, more than just evaluating each product individually, we want to, ask questions more of how the forecasters use these products together and how they just want to view these products and use them with other data sets.

00:15:19:01 – 00:15:57:11
Speaker 2
So many of these, those are convective products are most valuable. And the hours leading up to and during operations. So it is very valuable to be able to have them in one holistic display. And this is what we’re calling something like the Goes-r convective product procedure. Because as the forecaster goes into warning mode, having one goes-r convective product display will make it much easier for him to check back in on all the products and see what they’re showing, instead of having to toggle between multiple displays, each with a different product because we all know there’s a lot of information being thrown out of forecaster, especially when they’re in working mode.

00:15:57:11 – 00:16:22:01
Speaker 2
It’s hard for them to disseminate all of that. So we want to make it as easy as possible for them to, view all this valuable information. But we want to also find out how best the forecaster can most efficiently view these products and view them together and with other data sets and, in unobtrusive manner. So, that this will definitely be a need to see what forecasters think of it.

00:16:22:04 – 00:16:29:23
Speaker 2
So that’s all I have, and I’ll take any questions that anyone might have.

00:16:29:25 – 00:16:53:16
Speaker 2
To. Yeah. But here comes the product layer p w a layer of data is what layers or what layers. How do you what are the resolving power of the go sounder. It’s three layers. Layer up from the surface to 900 millibars, 900 to 7 and then 7.3. Oh, okay. So that’s pretty much what I mean.

00:16:53:19 – 00:17:16:17
Speaker 2
This information, as a result of that, three layers of, moisture information, that’s the same thing for for safety for us all these three layers. So they we hope this will display a level of information like here we have 500 mil of our state is a state, you know, of our state of black that is really representative of a deeper layer okay.

00:17:16:19 – 00:17:24:15
Speaker 2
Average to that level okay. All right. Thank you. Yep.

00:17:24:17 – 00:17:49:28
Speaker 2
Bill, this is Frank in Charleston. I was wondering if there had ever been given thought of, looking at the, the lightning data beyond just the arrays you show, but using something like the Earth network’s, total lightning, because that’s what, most offices have access to. Yeah. I don’t think there’s plans to that this year, but, I’d have to ask Geoffrey.

00:17:49:29 – 00:18:23:01
Speaker 2
Stand up. If they plan to do that in the future. Okay. Because I think, you know, maybe it would give you more options in, if you have. Yeah, a quiet weather situation, but you happen to have some active weather in a, you know, hole in your, ray network. It might help fill in those holes. Yeah. No, I agree, but it’ll it’ll be maybe it’ll be useful to see how the, Earth Network’s experiment goes in July to see how good that data actually is, because we know the data that we’re not so sure.

00:18:23:04 – 00:18:30:00
Speaker 2
Not any data got yet.

00:18:30:02 – 00:18:59:06
Speaker 2
Hey. Hey, Bill. Tony here? Yeah. I don’t know if you have that tracking tool chart again. Yeah, I thought that was pretty interesting. They were going to do it for more than more. Yeah. You’re looking at get them a look at some radar satellite model data with that. Yeah, I’m really excited about that. How much have you already been doing or, you know, can I say a little bit more about, you know, whether it’s for, these other data sets?

00:18:59:08 – 00:19:22:21
Speaker 2
I haven’t even seen it yet. I think they just finished it or are just getting it ready. Oh, so this is hot off the price? Kind of. Yes, very much so. Oh, okay. Well, so, and it’s something that I’ve requested before because forecasters wanted to look at, maybe trends in mature, storm evolution. And I think this could be something that could help with that.

00:19:22:24 – 00:19:46:00
Speaker 2
Yeah. Okay. Because even, you know, the other area where we are very interested in to I think everyone is, you know, the, the model, depiction of the satellite data and you know, I know the four panel, depiction is nice, but and I don’t know if Sarah had made any progress with that, but actually coming up with a difference product where you could say, you know what?

00:19:46:03 – 00:20:03:16
Speaker 2
At whatever the forecast time is and comparing it to actual, fairly and actually doing a difference field so you don’t have to kind of do an eyeball back and forth. And I don’t know if they may have you heard it? Or maybe Dan knows if they’ve made any progress with that.

00:20:03:18 – 00:20:08:14
Speaker 1
I haven’t heard anything regarding that in particular now.

00:20:08:16 – 00:20:16:00
Speaker 2
Okay. So it still would be kind of a side by side as to. Yeah. And, or toggle even back and forth.

00:20:16:02 – 00:20:33:21
Speaker 1
We, we are coming up with other types of tools, for example cross-sections. And we really want to look at the long wave, difference to focus on, convective initiation, putting it side by side with a cross-section of mixing ratio.

00:20:33:24 – 00:20:54:01
Speaker 2
Yeah, yeah. Bill, I think, you know, in terms of doing a comparison, the tracking tool or the another tool form where they can, you know, whatever feature they are interested in, you know, see how fast or and what direction the model is taking it, and then actually do a similar thing with the actual, satellite observations. Yeah, that, that that would be neat.

00:20:54:03 – 00:21:20:08
Speaker 2
Okay. But also, I don’t know if there’s a risk reduction proposal, out by Justin Seacliff and Jason, I can that’ll be, pressing her simulated imagery, but comparing it to actual imagery. And so they’ll be able to give statistics, basically looking at each her run and see how each her run is doing based on the comparisons of, oh, that’ll be great.

00:21:20:08 – 00:21:44:25
Speaker 2
And one is that that’s still to be done. Right. You know. Yeah. That was in the latest, batch of proposals there. I was accepted, I guess you could say, all right. Yeah. Oh, thanks. So that would be something that might be evaluated in this free experiment next year. Next year. Okay. Right.

00:21:44:28 – 00:22:17:10
Speaker 2
Okay. Oh, this is, Ken Prior and Star, and, just wanted to go back to the, 30 different product you were showing and just wanted to let you know and everybody else up on the call this morning that, we are generating a, vertical 80 different, product here in star, using those sounder data, using a current generation of the growth sounder.

00:22:17:12 – 00:23:05:26
Speaker 2
And this program seems to work a little differently. It, searches for it. They eat maximum near the surface and the overlying. It’s a minimum aloft, usually, you know, in the mid troposphere. And then calculate the difference between those two values. But, yes, the experimental version of that product, is available, on our site. So if anybody is interested in looking at a current experimental version using the current, goals sounder, those, images are available.

00:23:05:29 – 00:23:31:06
Speaker 2
Okay. Cool. And that’s, so just I observed sounding analysis data that. Yes. Okay. Yeah. To look at that, maybe we could do some comparisons. Yes, certainly that that would be great.

00:23:31:08 – 00:23:40:10
Speaker 1
Okay. Any other questions for Bill?

00:23:40:13 – 00:24:00:01
Speaker 1
Okay. Well, are there any other questions anybody has? It can be anything. Maybe a recent weather event or anything you want to comment on. Before we end our call here.

00:24:00:03 – 00:24:22:11
Speaker 1
Okay. Well, hearing none, thank you, everybody, for participating. And just a reminder that, the recording of this will be, placed online and the visit pages so you can check it out later there for review as well. And also, we’ll have another, visit satellite chat at 1:30 p.m., mountain time this afternoon. Thanks. And have a great day.

00:24:22:14 – 00:24:23:08
Speaker 2
And then we’ll,