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Return to list of UOP Reports to the Board of Trustees October 1998 ReportMEMORANDUM TO: Board of Trustees FROM: Jack D. Fellows Director of UCAR Office of Programs (UOP) SUBJECT: Annual Status Report on UOP Programs Attached you will find the detailed annual UOP report. As you may remember, UOP consists of eight programs that will be described below. While UOP is composed of many distinct programs, UOP actually engages in three basic activities involving the atmospheric, oceanic, and earth science communities:
All the UOP programs are guided by UOP’s and UCAR’s strategic plans and reflect the UCAR-wide goal areas (science, research facilities, education and training, technology transfer, and research and operational partnerships). The UOP programs and leaders are:
I urge you to read through the detailed program report below to gain a better understanding of the full scope of UOP activities this past year, as well as visit individual program web sites. The highlights from this annual report include:
The above summary is just a small part of what these UOP programs did during the past year. I believe that these programs have contributed significantly to fulfilling UOP’s mission of service to the atmospheric and related science community. Cooperative Program for Operational Meteorology, Education and Training Established in 1989, the COMET Program supports the professional development of operational forecasters in the nation’s weather services. Education and Training All COMET education and training activities fall under one core program, ensuring an integrated suite of education products that focus on topic areas rather than method of delivery. The program uses the Web for conceptual understanding and application, teletraining for seminar-like discussions of application and forecasting issues, and CD-ROM for practice cases and archival storage of Web and teletraining content. In-residence activities take place in the COMET classroom and include case studies to illustrate and clarify lecture sessions. The COMET Program, on behalf of the NWS, operates a national meteorology education and training Website. The site, http://www.meted.ucar.edu/, contains Web modules on several weather forecasting subjects. A complete copy of the site is also available on CD for individuals without good Internet access. Satellite Meteorology Development in this area over the past six months has included two satellite mesoscale meteorology courses for operational forecasters, a satellite meteorology course for university faculty, and a CD-based module. The two-week courses aim to provide meteorologists with current information on the latest capabilities of the new generation of geostationary meteorological satellites. The CD-based module, Satellite Meteorology: Using the GOES Sounder, provides information on sounder products with application examples. The COMET Program also began development of POES training this summer. Forecasting Severe Convection Efforts in training weather forecasters on severe convection continued to focus on assessing the mesoscale environment and forecasting convective storm type. The COMET Program gave graphic and technical support to the NWS Western Region in their development and delivery of a teletraining session titled Anticipating Convection in the Desert Southwest: A Case Exercise. In addition, the COMET Program delivered a total of five sessions of Anticipating Storm Evolution: A Case Study Exercise. This three-hour teletraining session used scenarios from several states during a convective outbreak to integrate skills for anticipating convective storm type and evolution In addition to case-based teletraining sessions, the COMET Program completed development of its first-ever Web-based module, Mesoscale Convective Systems: Squall Lines and Bow Echoes. The first section focuses on conceptual models. Additional sections on physical process and case exercises are also now available. Slated for release in early fall of this year, the CD module titled An MCS Matrix is composed of 21 four-dimensional numerical simulations based on the interactions of 10 different shear profiles with the same thermodynamic profile. In addition a one-week COMAP Symposium on mesoscale convective systems was held in the COMET classroom. Hydrology Two three-week hydrometeorology classes were held for NWS hydrologists and hydrology focal points. Aviation Weather Training for Forecasters The first Web-based module on aviation weather, Forecasting Aviation Icing: Icing Type and Severity, which explains conceptual models, physical processes, and the atmospheric parameters that influence aircraft icing, has been published. The NWS Alaska Region hosted a one-week COMET workshop on aviation hazards. Two teletraining sessions on forecasting aircraft icing were held in February and March of this year for Navy forecasters. The first of a series of Web modules on Icing Assessment and Forecast Tools has been completed along with a corresponding CD-ROM containing case data. Numerical Weather Prediction The COMET Program has been asked to phase out its severe convection activities and begin a new series of Web modules on Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) focused on the needs of the field forecaster. Currently being planned, these Web modules will focus on the use of mesoscale models. In addition, the program held two one-week NWP COMAP Symposiums. Additional Training Activities COMET module distribution is now a program activity. Prices have been lowered to cover only expenses and all program income is used to further the mission of the COMET Program. University pricing is $75/module. In the spring of 1998, the COMET Program conducted an evaluation of its CD modules. In addition to an on-line survey, telephone interviews and site visits were conducted. The results are showing that module use is up over 1995 levels and opinions of subject matter and pedagogy are more favorable than in 1995. Perhaps most importantly, forecasters believe that COMET modules have enhanced their forecasting performance. Analysis of additional responses to the on-line survey is continuing. In cooperation with two other UCAR programs, the COMET Program continued to develop its case study library to provide data sets for research and education programs throughout the nation. By September of 1998, twelve case studies had been distributed. Cross-utilization of case studies is being implemented; teletraining case studies as well as case studies used in modules are being made available through the system. Users can browse data sets and retrieve partial cases either on tape or via FTP through the Cooperative Distributed Interactive Atmospheric Catalog (CODIAC) System, a flexible data browsing and downloading system. The COMET Program is now the host Website for the American Meteorological Society's (AMS) DataStreme Project Course. This course is a 12-week, graduate level, basic meteorology, distance-learning course for K-12 teachers. Also available on this page are real-time weather maps, a daily national weather summary, and real-time lab activities for the classroom. International Activities To meet the needs of the international academic and education and training communities in atmospheric sciences, the COMET Program provides access to its products and acts as a facilitator. In this way, other organizations can benefit from COMET experience in developing their own capacity for the production of education and training products. The COMET Program, with funding from the European satellite program (EUMETSAT) and the German government, successfully completed the development of two CD-ROM modules and the training of four fellows for the African Satellite Meteorology, Education, and Training (ASMET) Project. The fellows were from the Regional Meteorological Training Centers (RMTCs) in Kenya and Niger. In cooperation with the University of Costa Rica, the COMET module on GOES imagery will be released this fall in Spanish. The Outreach Program Since the beginning of the Outreach Program in 1990, over 124 different projects have received Outreach Program funding. A Fellowship Program was established in 1995 to provide financial support for graduate and postdoctoral students wishing to research operational forecasting topics. Primary accomplishments of the Outreach Program during the last six months are listed below.
Additional New Development
The COMET Program has been working on the development of an aviation weather consortium that will develop and provide aviation weather training to the aviation community. This effort is in response to the White House Commission on Aviation Safety and Security Report, which stated that the national goal is to reduce the fatal accident rate by 80% within a decade. The consortium will focus on the development and use of state-of-the-art multimedia training in aviation weather for pilots. The consortium membership is composed of representatives from the Navy, Air Force, FAA, NASA, NWS, and other aviation-oriented organizations. Demonstration educational material is planned and, with further funding, a full suite of education and training products will be produced.
Program for the Advancement of Geoscience Education PAGE was created in 1997 by UCAR as a specific response to requests by its associated educational institutions regarding the crucial issues of emerging educational technologies and the increased emphasis on contemporary learning theories. The mission of PAGE is to enhance the teaching and learning of undergraduate geoscience education through the application of new learning technologies and contemporary pedagogical applications. Since last October, PAGE activities have included: PAGE Community Planning Workshop PAGE received $57,000 from the NSF to convene a Community Planning Workshop for undergraduate education. The purpose of the workshop is to refine the initial findings of the faculty focus groups (conducted last fall) and to develop, in conjunction with the community, a long-range strategic plan for PAGE. This plan will be submitted to the NSF in support of base funding for PAGE. The meeting will be held at the Airle Conference Center in Warrenton, VA on November 1-3. Attendees include the PAGE Steering Committee, geoscience educators, and other community leaders. Remote Sensing Through Satellites Evaluation PAGE, in conjunction with COMET, has just completed production of the "Remote Sensing Through Satellites" website. The website was designed to supplement introductory undergraduate atmospheric science courses. The evaluation activities will examine the effectiveness and the efficiencies of the learning module, and will take place over two semesters at 9 participating colleges and universities. The website may be viewed at http://www.comet.ucar.edu/nsflab/. UMET II Project As part of our support of the Universidad Metropolitana de Puerto Rico, PAGE conducted a four-week summer workshop for UMET faculty on the design, production, and implementation of educational multimedia and web-based resources. The workshop was extremely successful, and PAGE is exploring avenues to offer the workshop to other faculties and geoscience community leaders. An additional component of the UMET project involves the production
of an electronic "Reference Toolkit" for faculty. The English version
of the Toolkit is complete and undergoing copyright clearances.
The toolkit encompasses the following tools: Geoscience Community Multimedia Database Project The purpose of this prototype project is to provide the geoscience education community with a web-accessible, expandable database of educational materials. The database will be initially populated by a subset of images from the COMET modules, the UCAR library, and several university collections currently on line. PAGE is examining the applicability of a number of existing geoscience search engines to this effort. DRI Project PAGE is continuing work in conjunction with Dr. Melanie Wetzel (DRI) and faculty from the Colorado Mountain College(CMC). PAGE staff has trained CMC faculty in instructional design techniques and multimedia authoring, and continues to consult with them on the production of an instructional program in atmospheric technology. Issues and Challenges Funding issues remain the biggest challenge for PAGE. Current RFPs that PAGE is considering include the Digital Libraries II Initiative (in conjunction with the University of Michigan), Women and Girls in Science (in conjunction with the University of Colorado), and the Course, Curriculum, and Laboratory Improvement [CCLI] (in conjunction with Iowa State University). A more definitive picture of funding prospects for PAGE should be forthcoming after the Community Planning Workshop.
Joint Office for Science Support (JOSS) Field Operations and Data Management The Field Operations and Data Management activities, managed by Dirk Dirks, provide program planning and design, site surveys, field operation logistics, and management and data management activities including system design and the collection, quality control, formatting and customized delivery of scientific project data. JOSS completed the preparation of a high resolution sounding dataset for the Fronts and Atlantic Storm Tracks Experiment (FASTEX). The complete datasets contain more than 9500 soundings from ships, aircraft, and land sites from 10 collaborating countries and research institutions. The field catalog from the entire two month project is available on-line as a historical resource on day-to-day operational activities. The Cooperative Atmospheric Surface Exchange Study (CASES) had its first focussed field deployment in 1997. JOSS now houses a portion of the CASES-97 research datasets on CODIAC in cooperation with GCIP. JOSS continues to support CASES as they prepare for the second focussed field deployment planned for fall 1999. JOSS continued its role as the in-situ data module for the Global Energy and Water Exchange (GEWEX) Continental-scale International Project (GCIP) Data Management and Service System (DMSS). Tactical Data Management Plans have been produced and distributed for these datasets and upcoming planned EAOPs. JOSS continues to play a major role in the development of the on-line GCIP DMSS. The year-long field deployment continues for the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic (SHEBA) Project. Activity is centered on a ship frozen in the permanent Arctic ice 400-500 miles north of the Alaska north slope. An extensive array of meteorological, chemistry, oceanographic, and radiation instrumentation is deployed in the vicinity of the ship. JOSS is responsible for SHEBA data management including the operation of the SHEBA on-line Field Data Catalog aboard the ship and in parallel at the JOSS facility in Boulder, CO. Near-real time input of and access to data via the catalog is possible using satellite communications and the Internet. Operations summaries, daily surface observations, position updates, and soundings from the ship are all available. In addition, JOSS collects a selected suite of operational products (satellite imagery, model products, etc.) to help provide a complete record of this year-long field deployment. JOSS is providing archival services for all SHEBA datasets via CODIAC. The CODIAC Data Management System provides access via the World Wide Web to the extensive JOSS data archive. Over the last year the number of datasets in the CODIAC system has tripled, with the number of field projects and COMET case studies doubling. CODIAC provides access to over 1700 datasets from 25 field projects and 12 COMET case studies, with additional datasets being added almost daily. Queries of CODIAC have increased by 65 percent in the last year, with the web site now averaging 50,000 queries per month from users distributed around the globe. Continued development of CODIAC in FY1998 included support for porting the latest version of CODIAC to the NOAA National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL) in Norman, Oklahoma; development of a new skew-T plot for displaying soundings that conforms better to standard sounding displays; improvements in CODIAC to better handle the increasing size and number of projects and datasets; additional dataset compression options to improve the speed of transfer to a user’s computer; and a new feature to allow browsing of password-protected datasets. COMET Case Studies, funded by the NWS Office of Meteorology, is a joint project among UOP’s COMET, JOSS, and Unidata programs. Meteorological case studies are developed for use in COMET training activities. The joint project then makes the case study datasets easily accessible to the atmospheric sciences community by putting the datasets on-line and making them accessible via the CODIAC system. Currently, twelve COMET case studies are available through CODIAC. A major component of JOSS support to the NOAA Earth System Data and Information Management (ESDIM) Program research is providing software development expertise for the World Wide Web user interface providing access to NOAA’s geographically distributed on-line data archives. This system, known as NOAA Server, currently provides access to twelve NOAA data archives scattered across the U.S. NOAA Server provides facilities to search for datasets, descriptive information about the datasets, and browse and order individual datasets. Data management support for the Pan American Climate Studies (PACS) began in 1997. JOSS has maintained a comprehensive PACS Data Management World Wide Web page, providing links to tropical/oceanographic information as well as data archives produced at JOSS. The Water Vapor Sensing System (WVSS) Program has now achieved 21 aircraft-flight-months of quality water vapor information from two different United Parcel Service (UPS) B-757 aircraft and there is still sufficient attention to consider expansion for up to 60 aircraft. American Airlines has expressed interest in adding the WVSS to 102 aircraft. JOSS support to the Lake Induced Convection Experiment (Lake-ICE) included assistance with detailed planning and set-up of the Operations Center in Ann Arbor, MI, contributions to the Lake-ICE Operations Plan, staffing of Operations Director and Status Coordinator during the December 1997-January 1998 field phase, and provision of the Lake-ICE on-line Field Data Catalog during and after the field phase. In addition, JOSS continues work on the preparation of a high resolution sounding dataset consisting of North American Operational upper data as well as all research sounding data collected during the field phase. JOSS has established a web site on the JOSS data management system where selected project datasets along with the Field Catalog will be housed as part of the Lake-ICE distributed data archive. JOSS Staff have primary responsibility for the field operations for the Indian Ocean Experiment (INDOEX). The primary field phase for INDOEX is scheduled for January-March 1999, with the operations center located in the Maldive Islands. JOSS staff conducted a major site survey in the Maldives during February 1998 and will be finalizing arrangements for the field operations and logistics during September-December this year. The newly acquired weather satellite receiving system was deployed for INDOEX to the Maldives in September and will begin routine data collection in October 1998. JOSS staff participated in the final INDOEX planning meeting in Utrecht, Netherlands in June 1998. An Aircraft Flight Operations Simulation Exercise was conducted in Boulder in August 1998. JOSS has lead responsibilities in writing the INDOEX Operations Plan and the Data Management Plan which are both in preparation. A U.S. Project Office was established in JOSS for the Mesoscale Alpine Program (MAP), headed by J. Kuettner. The Project Office hosted a U.S. planning meeting in October 1997 and an international planning meeting in February 1998. A U.S. MAP White Paper was prepared and an advanced reservation was acquired for NCAR/ATD facilities for MAP. The MAP intensive field phase observations scheduled for August-November 1999 cover the general area of the Alps Mountains. The primary MAP Operations Center (MOC) will be located in Innsbruck, Austria; a Project Operations Center (POC) to support the coordination of operations between airborne and ground-based Doppler radars will be located at Milan-Linate (Italy) Airport. JOSS staff will support the planning for and field implementation of aircraft operations at both the MOC and POC. The field phase of the South China Sea Monsoon Experiment (SCSMEX) has been completed. All platforms and research systems functioned well. JOSS staff provided operational coordination during the installation of U.S.-owned research systems aboard two Chinese research ships. JOSS staff were instrumental in defining the requirements of the Field Operations Center and provided technical assistance during the field phase of SCSMEX. Discussions are under way to establish a secondary data archive center (upper air soundings only) at JOSS. This proposal has been endorsed by the Chinese SCSMEX Project Office. NASA has requested support to implement the field requirements of the Land Biosphere-Atmosphere (LBA) - Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) experiment to take place in Brazil in early 1999. During field operations JOSS is expected to provide logistics and management support to NASA’s Project Management Office. JOSS has been requested to provide technical support to the Eastern Pacific Investigation of Climate processes (EPIC) experiment. The support requested pertains to site surveys for operational base selection, preparation of field operations plan and data management plans, and operations management during the field phase of the experiment. Other JOSS support activities included continued Southern Hemisphere Marine Aerosol Characterization Experiment (ACE-1) data processing and archiving including the support for the ACE-1 Data Workshop (February, Hilo, Hawaii). JOSS/PSG provided travel support for this workshop for over 50 participants and also administrative logistical support . JOSS provided advisory support to the field operations of the Cooperative Atmospheric-Surface Exchange Study (CASES-97) in the central U.S. and the North Atlantic Region Aerosol Characterization Experiment (ACE-2) in the eastern Atlantic during this past summer. Early planning activities for future projects (2000 and beyond) that have involved JOSS staff participation during this past year include the Asian Aerosol Characterization Experiment (ACE-Asia), the Pan American Climate Studies Eastern Pacific Field Program (PACS 2000), the GEWEX Asian Monsoon Experiment (GAME), and CLIVAR/GOALS programmatic planning. Program Support The JOSS Program Support Group (PSG) is managed by Gene Martin. The program support staff works with government agencies, national and international institutions, and scientists to provide many kinds of assistance to the academic research community. In addition to the nine Boulder staff, 34 off-site staff and salaried visitors (in positions ranging from administrative personnel to research scientists and project managers) are employed to develop, manage, and support projects for the community. Travel support has been provided for approximately 1,800 individuals during FY98 to attend planning, organizing and oversight meetings, workshops and conferences. Office administration and management continues to be provided to the: (1) US Global Change Research Program (USGCRP); (2) Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Technical Support Group, Working Group II; and (3) GEWEX Continental-Scale International Project (GCIP). JOSS facilitates the activities of the following projects: GLOBE Learning Expedition – Helsinki, Finland. The GLOBE Learning Expedition was held June 30 through July 4, 1998. The Learning Expedition gathered teams of GLOBE students from around the world to meet one another, learn together, and showcase the results of their GLOBE projects. The event was co-sponsored by GLOBE Finland and the GLOBE Program and hosted in the historic city of Helsinki. 25 countries were represented at the expedition that included more than 200 students. Third Annual GLOBE Conference, Snowmass Village, Colorado. Leaders from GLOBE countries around the world and GLOBE franchises in the United States gathered on August 3-7, 1998 in Snowmass Village, for the Third Annual GLOBE Conference. GLOBE scientists also joined the Conference to report the status of their research using GLOBE student data and GLOBE science investigations. The conference included a series of discussions on recruiting, training, follow-up, and support-related issues. GLOBE students from Portugal and the United States presented their work at the World Expo in Lisbon, Portugal, September 1-3, 1998. Students from nine GLOBE schools conducted demonstrations of the GLOBE protocols at the U.S. Pavilion, which showcased GLOBE as an outstanding environmental education program since the World Expo began in May 1998. On-going GLOBE domestic and international training workshops. International GLOBE training workshops have been held in Kyrgyzstan, Greece, Senegal, China, and Nambia. Upcoming international training workshops include Miami, FL, Ghana, South Africa, Central Asia. Regional workshops and various in-state franchise training workshops are on-going throughout the US. In addition, JOSS supported more than 55 other domestic GLOBE workshops throughout the year.
Through international mechanisms, such as bilateral agreements, JOSS participates in activities within the following programs:
Finance and Administration During FY98 a new cooperative agreement between JOSS and the NOAA Office of Global Programs was approved. This is the 3rd 3-year agreement since 1988. The new agreement will provide continuity of UCAR support to NOAA’s Climate and Global Change Program by following the previous cooperative agreement, which terminates September 1, 1998, and will bring approximately $30 million in funding through JOSS. JOSS continues to be involved in the effort to develop the UCAR-wide Data Warehouse. Jon Rush, Manager of the JOSS Finance and Administration Group, chairs an advisory committee that supports UCAR Finance and Administration’s Decision Support Systems group with its goal of full implementation of the new Data Warehouse system in FY99.
UCAR Visiting Scientist Programs
VSP designs and manages specially tailored visitor programs for federal agencies. Each program is designed to meet the needs of the agency with the primary goal of facilitating partnerships between the academic and operational communities, and infusing the agency with new ideas and techniques. VSP also supports the activities of expert advisory panels and working groups for the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP). Since last October, VSP administered about 95 off-site visiting scientist appointments and supported technical reviews of the NCEP Climate Prediction Center and the NCEP Aviation Weather Center. Some of the other highlights from the past year months and near-future include: New Postdoctoral Program VSP is collaborating with the International Research Institute for Climate Prediction, which is located on the campus of Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Palisades, NY, to administer a new postdoctoral fellowship program. The program focuses on training in modeling and applications research. Two or three appointments will be made in the first year of the program. The deadline for applications is November 1, 1998. NOAA Summer Institute Every other year in June, VSP organizes a week-long institute in Steamboat Springs, CO, to bring together the postdoctoral fellows, host scientists and other guests who are involved with The NOAA Postdoctoral Program in Climate and Global Change. The format for this year’s institute was similar to past years in that current and former postdoctoral fellows presented brief summaries of their research in the morning, with time after each presentation for extended discussion and questions. Topics were randomized to provide continuous exposure of the fellows to research areas outside their own specialty. In the afternoons, there were group discussions organized around broad, integrating themes designed to reach across the many disciplines contributing to climate research, including public policy. These discussions were led by a senior scientist, guest or host speaker, but engaged the entire group in lively discussion/debate. This was especially true for the session exploring the possible links between global climate change and El Nino. UCAR Advisory Panel to NCEP Bob Brammer from TASC (The Analytical Systems Corporation) succeeded Jeff Kimpel, NSSL, as chair of this panel. The panel met last spring at the NCEP Space Environment Center in Boulder and will meet again in January during the AMS meeting. This panel will review two NCEP Centers in the coming year--Hydrometeorological Prediction Center (HPC) and Storm Prediction Center (SPC). Rit Carbone will lead the HPC review from NCAR and the SPC review will be lead by Mike Fritsch, Penn State University. The on-site reviews, conducted by peers and users of NCEP products, have proven to be effective management tools for NCEP and the NWS. Space Weather Workshop VSP will be administering the Space Weather Workshop at the NCEP Space Environment Center in Boulder. The workshop will involve about 250 users, vendors and researchers and will be held in the spring of 1999. GST Science and Technology Program The GPS Science and Technology (GST) Program was established this year as UCAR's focal point for the development of GPS applications in the geosciences. It includes the UNAVCO Facility, and the GPS Research Group that helped pioneer ground and space-based GPS sensing of the atmosphere. A major objective for GST is to promote and develop cross-disciplinary GPS applications for the atmospheric and solid-Earth sciences. UNAVCO Activities The University NAVSTAR Consortium (UNAVCO) is a consortium of 80 international universities and laboratories joined to promote the use of the Global Positioning System (GPS) for high-accuracy Earth science problems ranging from plate kinematics, earthquake processes and volcanoes, to sea level change and the atmosphere. The UNAVCO Facility is part of UNAVCO but resides at UCAR and UCAR and the UNAVCO consortium continue to work at developing both atmospheric and earth science application of GPS. The UNAVCO Facility completed a major transition in 1998. Based on an increasingly important role in supporting the NASA GPS Global Network and the International GPS Service (IGS), as well as development of an innovative low-cost single frequency GPS array technology, the Facility completed its evolution from an NSF-funded equipment and campaign intensive organization of three to four years ago to the multi-agency supported facility for GPS technology development and infrastructure support of today. On an equally important front, the UNAVCO Steering Committee appointed Professor Seth A. Stein as UNAVCO Scientific Director. Dr. Stein is past Chairman and current Professor of the Department of Geological Sciences at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. He is a past Presidential Scholar, a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union (AGU), and winner of the 1989 James B. Macelwane Medal presented by the AGU. As Scientific Director, Dr. Stein will be leading the UNAVCO community in a proposal writing process culminating in the next multi-year UNAVCO proposal to the National Science Foundation in the summer of 1999, working closely with the UNAVCO Steering Committee and UCAR on the ongoing UNAVCO reorganization, and working with UCAR management to improve upon how UCAR and UNAVCO can best serve both the earth science and atmospheric research communities. In its support role to NSF investigators, the UNAVCO Facility continued to provide GPS equipment from a community pool, supported major GPS campaigns on an international basis, implemented new and maintained existing GPS permanent stations, trained new GPS users in precise applications of GPS, promoted technology transfer to investigators and their collaborators, archived campaign and continuous data, lead the collaborative development of a seamless archive, ensured the success of an annual community meeting, and supported the community in the reorganization process.
GPS Research Group Activities This group provides continued support to data analysis for the 1,000 station Japanese GPS network. The network was designed to monitor crustal deformation associated with earthquakes, but is now also being used to provide atmospheric precipitable water data for research. It also supports Japanese researchers in their efforts to improve the accuracy of GPS positioning measurements. The group is also applying low cost single frequency GPS receivers, deployed in a dense array, to tomographic estimation of small scale three-dimensional tropospheric water vapor fields. Funded by DOE's Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) program, the system will deploy 25-30 GPS receivers at 1 to 3 km spacing in a 10 X 10 km or larger area. Carrier phase data from this array will be used to determine line-of-sight tropospheric delays induced by water vapor. These delays will be inverted using tomographic techniques, or assimilated into models, to estimate atmospheric water vapor fields at 30 min or smaller time intervals. The purpose of this activity is to develop a new atmospheric sensing technique for small scale water vapor fields. Cross-UOP Program Activities Better definition of atmospheric moisture fields is needed for microscale and mesoscale research, modeling and prediction. A GPS network can provide accurate and timely moisture and other geophysical data in a cost effective manner. GST and Unidata are working with participating universities to develop SuomiNet, a prototype National Geophysical Instrument (NGI). It will provide accurate, timely, spatially and temporally dense GPS sensing of real time atmospheric moisture and other geophysical data for research and education. Named in honor of Vernor Suomi, a pioneer in satellite remote sensing and atmospheric research, SuomiNet will include approximately 100 geophysical sensing sites distributed across the United States. In related activities, GST and Unidata proposed through KDI to develop a prototype object oriented framework as a testbed for the integration of multidisciplinary data and tools from (1) the GPS/MET database containing some 100,000 globally distributed GPS occultations observed from orbit, (2) SuomiNet, a real-time GPS network that senses tropospheric moisture, ionospheric and other geophysical data, and (3) eventually (from UCAR's COSMIC Program) a vastly larger set of GPS occultation and other data, disseminated to universities in near-real time. GST is providing scientific, technical and management support to the COSMIC program, a follow-on to GST's GPS/MET experiment, including participation in COSMIC data analysis center and fiducial network activities. Although COSMIC is principally an atmospheric science experiment, it has potential benefits to solid-Earth science, including improved gravity fields, improved GPS orbits, and improved understanding of atmospheric and ionospheric effects in GPS geodesy. Also, GST is exploring combined data management and archive activities for COSMIC (and SuomiNet), as appropriate.
Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere, and Climate COSMIC is a collaborative science experiment between the United States and Taiwan, with the objective to launch a constellation of eight micro-satellites in late 2001, which will provide atmospheric remote sensing data for weather prediction, climate studies, and ionospheric research. U.S. Federal agency support for COSMIC The Taiwan government expects U.S. agencies to contribute approximately 20% (~$20 M) of the total program cost ($100 M), particularly in the area of ground support and data processing. Over the past few months, UCAR management has devoted considerable effort toward soliciting the needed support from various agencies. The strategy UCAR developed to facilitate this is to separate the U.S. support of COSMIC into two parts – a research component and an operational augmentation. The research version can be established with the support of ~$10 M from the U.S. agencies. The research version allows all the key scientific objectives for COSMIC to be met, with the exception of real-time data delivery. The operational augmentation (which will cost another $10 M) can be developed after the research version is established. On 11 August, an interagency meeting was held at the National Weather Service to discuss the support for COSMIC. Many agencies expressed strong interest in the program. Bob Corell announced that NSF will contribute $5 M to the development of a research payload operational control and data center for COSMIC, with an additional $5 M to support university COSMIC research through the normal grant process. An ad hoc interagency committee will be organized to coordinate the remaining support needed for COSMIC. Technical Assistance Agreement UCAR submitted a Technical Assistance Agreement (TAA) to the Department of State (DOS) in early April, requesting DOS’ approval for UCAR to collaborate with NSPO on the development of COSMIC satellites. A current congressional investigation of the China-satellite issue has delayed DOS’ review and processing of these TAA requests. If such approval is not obtained by the end of this year, it could potentially jeopardize the COSMIC project. UCAR management is working through various channels to help speed up the approval process.
Potential augmentation to COSMIC A NASA Earth System Science Pathfinder (ESSP) proposal, known as AMORE – Atmospheric Moisture and Ocean Reflection Experiment – is being developed by Prof. Jerry North at Texas A&M University (TAMU) in close collaboration with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). This proposal plans to augment the existing COSMIC mission by increasing the total number of GPS/MET soundings from 4,000 to ~12,000 on a daily basis. In addition, AMORE will provide 1,600 water vapor profiles per day through a cross-link occultation technique. The AMORE augmentation, if successfully implemented, will significantly enhance the science planned for COSMIC. UCAR is strongly supportive of the AMORE augmentation proposal, and is working closely with JPL, the National Space Program Office (NSPO) of Taiwan, and TAMU to develop a management and cost plan for the combined COSMIC-AMORE mission. NASA’s decision on the AMORE augmentation proposal will be made by the end of December 1998. Unidata Unidata offers software and services that enable universities to acquire and use atmospheric and related data on their own computers, often in real time. Unidata software and services are available to any US college or university at no cost. Unidata Five-Year Proposal to NSF The NSF conducted a review of Unidata's proposal (submitted spring 1997) for continuing until 2003. Reviewers gave the proposal excellent ratings, and responses to their recommendations were submitted this summer. Java Software As proposed, Unidata has begun a major transition to Java software. Key aspects include releasing a Java version of the netCDF software (already in beta test); collaborating with Bill Hibbard (U of Wisconsin) on mathematical, data structure, and visualization classes in Java; and developing meteorologically-oriented user interfaces in Java. Complementing these efforts is a task force of university volunteers that will help specify and test the software as it emerges. The task force has begun describing "use cases" against which designs and applications will be measured for success. NCEP Model Data on IDD A collaboration with NCEP and NASA/Goddard is now improving (real-time) access to high-resolution outputs from experimental and operational models run at NCEP. Delivered via Unidata’s Internet Data Distribution (IDD) system, these data are especially useful for initializing and constraining regional mesoscale models, such as are being run routinely at multiple locations under the US Weather Research Program, a context in which reduced latency is important. WSR88D Base Data on IDD A collaboration with the U of Oklahoma and others (especially the NWS and the U of Washington) has just been launched to use a Unidata-style approach to managing full-resolution volume-scan data flows from a small network of 88D radars in and around Oklahoma. This prototype (which will employ very high-speed networks, including the vBNS) potentially sets the stage for nationwide assimilation and use of these data, such as for mesoscale studies in meteorology and hydrology. Zero-Cost Access to NOAAport. At this writing Unidata is near a memorandum of understanding with Alden Electronics and the U of Wisconsin to jointly utilize data from the NOAAport system. NOAAport, operated for the NWS in support of the Advanced Weather Information Processing System (AWIPS), delivers all data used in forecast offices nationwide, except for radar observations and certain local data. Anyone with a suitable satellite downlink can receive these data, but doing so reliably requires enhancements such as we will achieve with our Internet Data Distribution (IDD) methodology. This joint effort will employ NOAAport receivers at a few universities, and the hardware will be provided at no cost to Unidata or to the universities (beyond installation, maintenance, and Internet connectivity). This will result in major FY99 savings and thereby provides some relief in an otherwise difficult budgeting environment. Excellent proposal reviews notwithstanding, the near-term baseline budget for Unidata from NSF falls below recent expenditure levels. NWS- and NASA-Funded Projects Unidata is engaged in two projects on retrospective data access. NASA, through the U of Rhode Island, funds Unidata involvement in the Distributed Ocean Data System. DODS emphasizes remote (client-server) access to large scientific datasets. The NWS funds a joint Unidata/COMET/JOSS effort to make interesting case-study datasets available via Internet.
Information Infrastructure Technology and Applications The UCAR IITA program coordinates and enhances the UCAR community's capabilities to share and use data, information, and software services. This goal is achieved through data and information activities that promote collaboration among NCAR, UCAR, and UOP information groups while also encouraging high levels of individual system autonomy. Distributed Oceanographic Data System (DODS). In addition to the original set of activities, the IITA program is also managing the national DODS project. DODS was first developed by a joint collaboration between the University of Rhode Island (URI) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The scope of DODS has broadened recently with grants from NASA, NSF, and NOAA. The collaborators now include URI, MIT, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, NCAR High Altitude Observatory, UCAR Unidata, American Geophysical Union, Goddard Space Flight Center, Oregon State University, University of Miami, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of Illinois, and University of Hawaii. DODS makes remote, scientific data accessible through a number of familiar data analysis and visualization packages. There are two sides to DODS. The first, making data visible to others, involves setting up a DODS data server. Data servers are available for netCDF, HDF, JGOFS, and Matlab data. Servers for other data formats are being developed. The second side of DODS is to give data analysis and visualization packages the ability to access data served by DODS servers. Once the application is DODS-enabled, data from any DODS server can be accessed regardless of the format in which the data are actually stored. If either Matlab or IDL are used as the data analysis packages, then there are GUI programs for those packages that come with the DODS software. Several common Application Programming Interfaces (e.g., the netCDF API) also come with DODS. Applications that use these APIs can be DODS-enabled by relinking them to the DODS libraries. New DODS GUIs and API libraries are being developed. For more information, see the DODS web page at http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/packages/dods/ Satellite Receiving Facility. IITA has installed, and is operating, a satellite receiving facility to access data products over Weather Services International's (WSI) High Capacity Satellite Network. These data products, available at no additional charge to UCAR (as arranged by Unidata for the university community with WSI), include NEXRAD Information Dissemination Service (NIDS) data from all (~140) NEXRAD radar sites. Up until now, NIDS data products were available to UCAR via the Internet from a maximum of 25 NEXRAD sites. NIDS data products are selected by and delivered to UCAR users via software (the Local Data Manager developed by Unidata) operating on the IITA real-time data server, managed by RAP. The process of selecting and receiving these data is rapid and automated, allowing large numbers of users to access individualized packages of data products. Unidata also operates a satellite receiving facility to access the Alden Family of Services real-time meteorological data products which are also entrained within the IITA real-time data streams distributed to the UCAR and university communities using Local Data Manager software.
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