A presentation with illustrations on the history and activities of Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center (FNMOS) in the Monterey Bay Area, beginning with its origins at the Naval Postgraduate School in 1959

Laws, David

Calhoun, Institutional Archive of the Naval Postgraduate School

Calhoun: The NPS Institutional ArchiveDSpace RepositoryHistory of Naval Postgraduate School History of Naval Postgraduate School Documents2023-04-24Fleet Numerical Meteorology andOceanography Center (FNMOS)Laws, Davidhttps://hdl.handle.net/10945/71964Copyright is reserved by the copyright owner. Used by permission.Downloaded from NPS Archive: CalhounFleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center(FNMOS)"The Navy's Operational Supercomputing Center - Providing 24/7 Support for Naval Operations Worldwide"A pioneer in the application of supercomputing technology tpweather prediction.1959 - The Navy Numerical Weather Problems (NANWEP) group moved from Suitland, MD to the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) campus in Monterey under Capt. Paul M. Wolff, USN.1961 - Renamed the Fleet Numerical Weather Facility (FNWF). Shared use of model #1 of the first transistorized supercomputer - CDC 1604.1964 – Opened dedicated FNWF computer center with second CDC 1604. Moved electronic design lab to Point Pinos facility.1974 – Consolidated operations in new facility in Monterey. (FNWC)1993 – Adopted the Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center (FNMOC) title.FNMOC – Early Days• FNMOC in Monterey is the DoD's primary central production site for worldwide computer-generated operational meteorological and oceanographic analysis and forecast products.• Operates the world’s largest computing center for weather prediction and the only global Numerical Weather Prediction model meeting DoD cyber security standards.• Possesses world-class expertise in meteorology, oceanography, climatology, computer science, and military operations.FNMOC – TodayThe single most important consideration leading to these advances would be the treatment of the atmosphere and the oceans as a single environment. Thus, the transfer of both heat and momentum to and from the sea surface is the vital link in the single environment concept.- Philip G. Kesel, Lt., USN, U. S. Naval Postgraduate SchoolFNWF acts singularly in its treatment of the two fluids as a single, coupled system. Correct solutions to environmental problems demand this approach. Implied in the single environment concept is the transfer of mass and energy to and from the sea surface. This means then, that the task must be accomplished at an agency which generates, as FNWF does, all of the required information, both oceanographic and meteorological.- Paul M. Wolff, Capt., USN, Fleet Numerical Weather FacilityBulletin of the American Meteorological Society (1968) CDC 160A managed peripherals, including tape units, punches, Varian 530 plotter, and ASR-33 Teletypes.   CDC 1604 System at FNWF (1961)From: NWP and Naval Operations: The Real Story Bob Cash (1997) https://www.powershow.com/view/120909-N2NlN/NWP_and_Naval_Operations_powerpoint_ppt_presentation• Two CDC 1604s in use since 1961 were replaced in 1967 by a “giant” CDC 6500 dual-processor machine - comparable to the 386 microprocessor in FP performance.   • Other machines in use included two CDC 3200s and a CDC 8090.• A second 6500 acquired in 1969 was configured as a four-processor system to support a Northern Hemisphere Primitive Equation model. • Processors shared model data through extended core storage (ECS) for the “world’s first multi-processor production code.Late ’60s FNWF/FNWC Computing Capabilities Sources:: “30 Years of Navy Modelling and Supercomputers; An Anecdotal History” by Tom RosmondFNWF Communications Milestones • First digital transmission of weather data enabled over conventional analog phone lines (c. 1961) • First transmission of weather data via SYNCOM communications satellites.  Raw data and finished charts transmitted error-free to Hawaii and Guam at rates better than 3,000 wpm (1964)• First numerical weather products (pictures of predicted conditions) transmitted via TACSATCOM-1 satellite to mobile platforms (USS Guadalcanal & USS Lexington)  (c. 1969)• All programming, computer operation and maintenance, and development and fabrication of communications and interface devices performed in-house.1. Weather by Computer, Control Data Corporation (1963)2. Annual Report 1964 United States Naval Postgraduate School Monterey3. “Environmental support for naval operations,” Philip G. Kesel, Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (1968) 4. “Oceanographic data collection,” Paul M. Wolff, Bulletin American Meteorological Society (1968)5. “NWP and Naval Operations: The Real Story,” Bob Cash (1997) -ppt6. “30 Years of Navy Modelling and Supercomputers; An Anecdotal History,” Tom Rosmond (c. 2005) – ppt 7. Overview of Research at NPS using High-Speed Networks and High-Performance Computers,” Jeffrey L. Haferman (2008) - pptResources 

Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center (FNMOS)

https://calhoun.nps.edu/bitstream/handle/10945/71964/Laws_FNWF_Early_Computing_Story_2_2023-04-24.pdf?sequence=1

Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center (FNMOS)

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Calhoun, Institutional Archive of the Naval Postgraduate School