Management and display of four-dimensional environmental data sets using McIDAS

Over the past four years, great strides have been made in the areas of data management and display of 4-D meteorological data sets. A survey was conducted of available and planned 4-D meteorological data sources. The data types were evaluated for their impact on the data management and display system. The requirements were analyzed for data base management generated by the 4-D data display system. The suitability of the existing data base management procedures and file structure were evaluated in light of the new requirements. Where needed, new data base management tools and file procedures were designed and implemented. The quality of the basic 4-D data sets was assured. The interpolation and extrapolation techniques of the 4-D data were investigated. The 4-D data from various sources were combined to make a uniform and consistent data set for display purposes. Data display software was designed to create abstract line graphic 3-D displays. Realistic shaded 3-D displays were created. Animation routines for these displays were developed in order to produce a dynamic 4-D presentation. A prototype dynamic color stereo workstation was implemented. A computer functional design specification was produced based on interactive studies and user feedback

Global meteorological data facility for real-time field experiments support and guidance

A Global Meteorological Data Facility (GMDF) has been constructed to provide economical real-time meteorological support to atmospheric field experiments. After collection and analysis of meteorological data sets at a central station, tailored meteorological products are transmitted to experiment field sites using conventional ground link or satellite communication techniques. The GMDF supported the Global Tropospheric Experiment Amazon Boundary Layer Experiment (GTE-ABLE II) based in Manaus, Brazil, during July and August 1985; an arctic airborne lidar survey mission for the Polar Stratospheric Clouds (PSC) experiment during January 1986; and the Genesis of Atlantic Lows Experiment (GALE) during January, February and March 1986. GMDF structure is similar to the UNIDATA concept, including meteorological data from the Zephyr Weather Transmission Service, a mode AAA GOES downlink, and dedicated processors for image manipulation, transmission and display. The GMDF improved field experiment operations in general, with the greatest benefits arising from the ability to communicate with field personnel in real time

Space Shuttle interactive meteorological data system study

Although focused toward the operational meteorological support review and definition of an operational meteorological interactive data display systems (MIDDS) requirements for the Space Meteorology Support Group at NASA/Johnson Space Center, the total operational meteorological support requirements and a systems concept for the MIDDS network integration of NASA and Air Force elements to support the National Space Transportation System are also addressed

Atmospheric and Oceanographic Information Processing System (AOIPS) system description

The development of hardware and software for an interactive, minicomputer based processing and display system for atmospheric and oceanographic information extraction and image data analysis is described. The major applications of the system are discussed as well as enhancements planned for the future

A device-dependent interface for interactive image display

The structure of the device independent Display Management Subsystem (DMS) and the interface routines that are available to the applications programmer for use in developing a set of portable image display utility programs are described

SEAPAK user's guide, version 2.0. Volume 1: System description

The SEAPAK is a user interactive satellite data analysis package that was developed for the processing and interpretation of Nimbus-7/Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS) and the NOAA Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) data. Significant revisions were made to version 1.0 of the guide, and the ancillary environmental data analysis module was expanded. The package continues to emphasize user friendliness and user interactive data analyses. Additionally, because the scientific goals of the ocean color research being conducted have shifted to large space and time scales, batch processing capabilities for both satellite and ancillary environmental data analyses were enhanced, thus allowing large quantities of data to be ingested and analyzed in background

Strokes for Representing Univariate Vector Field Maps

Particle systems make an excellent tool for creating tracks (which we call strokes) in vector fields. The question addressed in this paper is how such tracks should be made to vary in size and colour in order to reveal properties such as local direction and strength of the field. We find that for strokes that vary from large to small, direction is indicated by the large end. We also find that for strokes that vary in colour, the colour of the background is the most important determinant of perceived direction

Visualizing Magnitude and Direction in Flow Fields

In weather visualizations, it is common to see vector data represented by glyphs placed on grids. The glyphs either do not encode magnitude in readable steps, or have designs that interfere with the data. The grids form strong but irrelevant patterns. Directional, quantitative glyphs bent along streamlines are more effective for visualizing flow patterns. With the goal of improving the perception of flow patterns in weather forecasts, we designed and evaluated two variations on a glyph commonly used to encode wind speed and direction in weather visualizations. We tested the ability of subjects to determine wind direction and speed: the results show the new designs are superior to the traditional. In a second study we designed and evaluated new methods for representing modeled wave data using similar streamline-based designs. We asked subjects to rate the marine weather visualizations: the results revealed a preference for some of the new designs

Centralized Storm Information System (CSIS)

A final progress report is presented on the Centralized Storm Information System (CSIS). The primary purpose of the CSIS is to demonstrate and evaluate real time interactive computerized data collection, interpretation and display techniques as applied to severe weather forecasting. CSIS objectives pertaining to improved severe storm forecasting and warning systems are outlined. The positive impact that CSIS has had on the National Severe Storms Forecast Center (NSSFC) is discussed. The benefits of interactive processing systems on the forecasting ability of the NSSFC are described