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Bio
Since joining
RMS in 2001, Kyle has served as the technical lead for RMS’ severe convective
storm risk models and has provided technical marketing support for features
common across RMS’ catastrophe modeling suite. He has a Bachelor of Science
in Meteorology from the University of Oklahoma, and is currently completing
the research requirements for his Master of Science at OU.
Abstract
Spatial problem
solving is an essential component in developing tools to inform insurance risk
management decisions. This session will provide a brief overview of catastrophe
risk management and underwriting in the insurance and reinsurance industries
and provide examples of how raster analysis is used in developing decision-support
tools for these industries. The development of hazard-specific geography will
also be described for managing global hazard and insurance exposure data.
Bio
A native of Layton, Utah, Alex DeCaria
received a B.S. in Meteorology from the University of Utah in 1985. He spent
11 years in the U. S. Navy as a Surface Warfare Officer and later as a Meteorology
and Oceanography Officer. He completed an M.S. in Meteorology and Physical Oceanography
at the Naval Postgraduate School in 1992, and received a Ph.D. in Meteorology
from the University of Maryland in 2000. He is now an Assistant Professor of
Earth Sciences (Meteorology) at Millersville University of Pennsylvania.
Abstract
The correlation
between cloud-to-ground lightning strike density and terrain elevation in Southeastern
Pennsylvania is investigated using the ArcGIS software package (include the
Spatial Analyst and Geostatistical Analyst extensions). The method for converting
the data into an ArcGIS readable format, and the methods of analysis are detailed.
ArcGIS is used to
calculate the density of lighting strikes from lightning locations for the years
1995 – 2001 provided by the National Lighting Detection Network (courtesy
of Väisälä-GAI, Inc.) The lightning locations and terrain elevation
data were archived in different coordinate systems, requiring conversion to
a common coordinate. The conversion was easily accomplished using ArcGIS.
The lightning strike
density was then compared qualitatively and quantitatively to terrain elevation
data from the U. S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Elevation Dataset
(NED). A statistical analysis shows a weak, but statistically significant negative
correlation between terrain elevation and lightning strike density over Southeastern
Pennsylvania. This suggests that orography is a contributor, but not the dominant
factor in thunderstorm formation in this region.
Bio
John Ferree
is the Instructional Resources Team Leader at the Warning Decision Training
Branch, a position he has held since 1993, although before October 2000 the
group was called the Operations Training Branch. His work mainly consists of
designing and developing instructional materials, teaching classes, and managing
the many tasks assigned to them. His areas of expertise are distance learning
and radar meteorology. Recently, he has focused on understanding the scientific,
technological, and human aspects of decision making as it pertains to the issuance
of severe weather warnings by National Weather Service Forecasters. Over the
past few years, he has co-led 17 one-week workshops on Warning Decision Making.
Shortly after graduating from the best school of meteorology (University
of Oklahoma) in 1977, John began working for NOAA’s National Weather Service.
He worked a few years as a weather forecaster in Arkansas and Nevada before
settling for an eleven-year stint in Kansas City. At the time his job was forecasting
aviation weather for the Central U.S. at the Air Route Traffic Control Center
in Olathe, Kansas, and for three years at the National Aviation Weather Center.
Abstract
The Weather
Event Simulator (WES) is a software package that uses an offline LINUX PC, archived
data (observation, radar, satellite, model, lightning, profiler), AWIPS display
software (D2D), and specialized software that hides and reveals data to simulate
a real event. The WES was delivered to all NOAA’s National Weather Service
Offices in late 2001. More recently, all offices have been provided archive
capability so they may develop their own local weather events into simulations
for future training.
In addition to the goal of being able to “train like we fight,” NWS offices are utilizing the WES in a myriad of ways not first envisioned. The WES has become a critical asset in management’s need to assess local training needs. New techniques and operational research findings are being locally demonstrated using the WES in a case study mode. In addition to individual forecasters using the WES to develop their own warning strategies, warning teams are developing teamwork strategies that can be easily transferred to real warning events. Forecast teams are also using the WES to accomplish accurate and timely post event assessments, often within hours of the end of the event.
A project has begun to develop a non-proprietary or “free” WES. Several issues, including intellectual property and software support, are being addressed by the project team. This “free” version of WES has the potential for providing a platform for direct collaboration between the research/academic community and NWS offices.
Bio
Dr. Ted Habermann
works at NOAA's National Geophysical Data Center in Boulder Colorado. He has
worked on a number of data access and management tasks over the last decade.
He developed the FreeForm Data Access System that was used to provide multi-platform
access to several dozen data collections on CD-ROMs including a NOAA / NASA
Pathfinder data collection for the benchmark period. He developed and implemented
the Web-based Student Data Archive for the GLOBE Program and was the Director
of Systems for GLOBE for a year. He has recently been the technical lead for
the NOAA National Data Centers Server Project and is working on several large
data integration partnerships: the National Ocean Partnership Program Virtual
Ocean Data Hub, the Comprehensive Large Array Stewardship System, and NOAA Enterprise
GIS. His primary interests are at the confluence of relational databases, GIS,
and the World Wide Web and in organizational dynamics of information technology
partnerships.
Abstract
Most of the
Unidata community has some concept of what Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
are. Many of these concepts may be long-held and probably include terms like
"proprietary", "expensive", "commercial", or "useless".
In fact, over the last decade, GIS have evolved considerably away from proprietary
desktop environments to focus on data and information sharing using networks,
open standards, and geospatial databases.
For Unidata, GIS represents a new technology aimed primarily at customers that are outside of the traditional Unidata community. This makes GIS a classic "disruptive innovation" from Unidata's point of view. Dealing with disruptive innovations presents a variety of organizational challenges. Unidata's history and values that it shares with the GIS community suggest that these challenges can be overcome if Unidata sees GIS on its expanding horizon!
Bio
Daryl Herzmann is currently working as the Program Assistant to the Iowa Environmental
Mesonet at Iowa State University under the supervision of Dr Raymond Arritt.
Daryl received his bachelors degree in Atmospheric Sciences in 2001 and has
been working on the Mesonet since then.
Abstract
The recent past has seen an explosion of meso observing networks, commonly referred
to as Mesonets. State governments, academia, broadcast television industry,
federal governments, and others have been rapidly covering the United States
with environmental observing platforms. Unfortunately, very little collaboration
and communication currently exists between many of these meso-networks.
At Iowa State University, we have fostered partnerships between observing networks to build the Iowa Environmental Mesonet. Unlike other mesonets, we only own a handful of stations in the mesonet. Instead, we utilize existing networks to provide a temporally and spatially dense picture of the conditions in the state.
Collecting and distributing data from diverse networks is not a trivial task. There have been technical, political, and financial obstacles to overcome in order to make the Iowa Mesonet possible. Most of these issues have been resolved through cross-discipline, multi-agency cooperation.
Drawing on our history and experiences, the IEM presents an interesting case study of private sector, public sector, and academia collaboration and cooperation.
Bio
Dr. Jacobs
has been at the National Science Foundation (NSF) for 18 years and provides
oversight to the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and activities
at University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR). His oversight responsibilities
cover a wide range of topics ranging from supercomputers to aircraft and from
climate modeling to impacts on society resulting from natural and anthropogenic
induced changes in the environment. Dr. Jacobs has represented geosciences in
a variety of NSF studies and initiatives related to high performance computing
and information technology, including the recent Blue Ribbon Panel on Cyberinfrastructure.
Prior to coming to NSF, Dr. Jacobs was executive VP and senior research scientist
at The Center for the Environment and Man (CEM) in Hartford, CT. His basic research
interests included four-dimensional computer models of the ocean, atmosphere
and land processes, data analyses of large environmental databases, and the
development of computer graphics software for the analysis of observed and model
data. Domestic and foreign governments as well as private industry sponsored
Dr. Jacobs’ research.
Abstract
Unidata has
contributed to the university atmospheric science community, federal agencies,
and the private sector over a number of years and is poised to continue to contribute
in the future under a recent five-year renewal award. But how and under what
circumstances will Unidata continue this distinguished record of contribution?
Answering this question presupposes something about my ability to predict future
community needs, implementation mechanisms for meeting those needs, and the
modes of support for accomplishment. Ten years ago, I would not have been able
to predict where Unidata is today. There is no reason to believe that I will
be anymore successful in my prognostications today than I might have been ten
years ago. However, I suggest that there are set of tenets (perhaps evolving)
that will strongly influence Unidata’s future. In addition, there will
be a certain period, I speculate, during which there will be a reevaluation
of the modes of support under which NSF seeks to find the most effective mechanisms
to enable the Nation’s future through discovery, learning and innovation
in the Geosciences. One speculative example is provided of the information and
services that might be provided to the community several years hence.
Bio
Joseph B. Klemp
is a senior scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research and head
of the Mesoscale Dynamics Group of the Mesoscale and Microscale Meteorology
Division. He received his Bachelors of Chemical Engineering Degree from the
University of Minnesota in 1967, and his Masters and Ph.D. degrees in Chemical
Engineering in 1968 and 1971, respectively, from Stanford University under the
direction of Prof. Andreas Acrivos. Since joining the staff at NCAR in 1971,
Klemp has been conducting the oretical and modeling research to improve the
understanding of mountain waves and moist convective systems, with emphasis
on severe weather phenomena such as downslope windstorms, tornadic thunderstorms,
and squall lines. He has twice received the NCAR Outstanding Publication Award
and, in 1983, was co-recipient of the AMS Clarence Leroy Meisinger Award for
the development of numerical models which have contributed significantly to
the understanding of severe convective storms. Klemp has directed the development
of advanced mesoscale models as well as interactive graphics for the analysis
of large computer data sets. His efforts have produced new time-splitting numerical
techniques for solving the nonhydrostatic equations of motion in a manner that
preserves conservation properties, as well as data analysis packages that are
used extensively for detailed analysis of model and observational data, through
the interactive displays in both two and three dimensions. Recently, Klemp has
been investigating the dynamics of gravity currents, internal bores, and coastally
trapped disturbances to determine the critical factors that govern their formation
and propagation. Klemp has co-authored over 100 journal articles and conference
reports; he is a former Co-Chief Editor of the American Meteorological Society
Journal, Monthly Weather Review, and currently serves as Publications Commissioner
of the AMS. Klemp is presently coordinating the joint agency development of
a new Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model that is intended to be used
for both university research and operational forecasting.
Abstract
The overall
goal of the WRF Modeling Project is to develop a next-generation mesoscale forecast
model and assimilation system that will advance both the understanding and prediction
of important mesoscale precipitation systems, and promote closer ties between
the research and operational forecasting communities. The development of WRF
is a collaborative effort among NCAR/MMM, NOAA/NCEP, NOAA/FSL, OU/CAPS, FAA,
AFWA, and the university community. WRF will become the operational mesoscale
forecast model at NCEP and AFWA in FY04, and is maintained and supported by
NCAR as a community model and freely distributed. The WRF system is designed
specifically for high-resolution simulations suitable for a wide range of applications.
Convection resolving numerical weather prediction is of major interest, and
WRF provides an ideal system for evaluating forecasting potential at storm-scale
resolutions. The modular structure of WRF facilitates its coupling with other
models for broader applications. Presently activities are underway to couple
WRF with an ocean model for a hurricane forecast system, with an atmospheric
chemistry model for an air quality forecast system, and may be coupled with
a fire module for a fire weather forecast system. These applications will allow
WRF based systems to address a wide variety of weather related societal issues.
Bio
Much of John
Merrill's research work has been on long range atmospheric transport as an aspect
of the large-scale circulation of the atmosphere. He works in collaboration
with atmospheric chemists and with paleoclimatologists. His current funded research
is on meteorological analysis and modeling for the ACE-Asia project, a major
field program to characterize the mixed natural and pollution aerosol (smoke,
dust and haze) which flows out of Asia. This includes quantifying the impact
of the aerosols on the radiative budget over ocean areas and the relationship
between the patterns of forcing and the atmospheric circulation.
John Merrill advises graduate students in atmospheric chemistry and physical oceanography, and teaches graduate courses on meteorology and climate at the Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island. He directs an NSF-sponsored Graduate Teaching Fellows in K-12 Education project, in which a dozen students in marine and environmental science bring their science to students in the classroom, working collaboratively with teachers.
Abstract
Volcanos have
for millennia presented hazardous conditions on an episodic basis to those unfortunate
enough to be close to large events. In recent years satellite monitoring techniques
and ash-dispersal forecasting models have been employed to identify and track
eruption clouds to provide information needed to prevent aircraft from encountering
significant amounts of volcanic ash in the air. Many flight routes pass over
active volcanos, and many more cross regions downwind of active volcanoes, particularly
in the North Pacific and in and around Alaska. Gridded meteorological data -
most critically, wind fields - distributed via the Unidata IDD are used by several
groups as part of a combined operational and voluntary effort involving volcano
observatories, meteorological agencies and air traffic control centers. This
presentation will begin with a brief description of the monitoring and detection
techniques, and go on to include a information on the transport modeling aspects,
including dependencies on availability of data. In addition, recent findings
recapitulating the accepted importance of gigantic explosive eruptions in climate
change will be discussed briefly, specifically in regard to the massive eruption
of Toba volcano ~74 k years before present.
Bio
Peter recieved
his B.S. in Meteorology in 1988 from UW Madison, his M.S. in Atmospheric Science
in 1992 at UW Madison. He was an Assistant Researcher from 1992-1995 with UW
Madison. Mr. Pokrandt is curently a Computer Systems Administrator since 1995-present
in UW Madison.
Abstract
Software and data made available by
Unidata are used extensively by students and researchers at UW-Madison, as well
as in undergraduate and
graduate courses. This talk will present a broad overview of several ongoing
research projects at UW-Madison that take advantage of the available
software and data. Classroom uses will also be discussed.
Bio
Tom Priddy
is an Agricultural Meteorologist with the University of Kentucky, Cooperative
Extension Service and Director of the Agricultural Weather Center. He received
a BS degree in Ag. Meteorology from Purdue University and a graduate degree
from Colorado State University also in Meteorology. He assumed the position
at U.K in 1977. As a naval meteorologist, Tom forecasted weather all over the
world...with a total of 26 years active and reserve time.
Bio
Mohan Ramamurthy
joined the Unidata Program Center in January 2003 as its new director. Prior
to joining Unidata, he was a professor in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences
at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for over 15 years. Mohan Ramamurthy
received his Ph.D. in meteorology from the University of Oklahoma and did his
postdoctoral studies at the Supercomputer Computations Research Institute at
Florida State University.
His expertise includes data assimilation, atmospheric modeling, supercomputing, scientific visualization, research and educational use of meteorological data, and delivery of weather information and educational materials over the Internet. His current research interests include mesoscale processes, ensemble forecasting, information technology, interactive multimedia instruction and learning, and digital library technologies. He is currently the chair of the American Meteorological Society's Board of Higher Education.
Bio
Dr. Scott T. (trouble) Shipley Ph.D. in Meteorology, University
of Wisconsin, Madison (1978). Senior Staff at Raytheon, and Affiliate Professor
with George Mason University Dept. Geography. Currently working on NPOESS, the
next generation polar orbiting satellite system. Consultant in GIS Meteorology
to the National Weather Service (NWS) and USDA World Board (WAOB).
Dr. Shipley is most familiar with measurements and instrumentation. He is not as impressed with models as most modelers are, but is very interested in the Geographic Information System (GIS) capability - a set of tools which can mix models with real-world observations. His Ph.D. thesis addressed the behavior of laser beams in rainfall (esoteric stuff). He flew lasers on airplanes at the NASA Langley Research Center until the Challenger Accident in 1986, and participated in various global/national field experiments. Credits include commercial software, a patent for cockpit weather advisories, various professional awards, and articles in Nature, Environmental Science and Technology, Journal of Atmospheric Chemistry, Applied Optics, Journal of Applied Meteorology, and others. "Dr. T" is currently developing an ArcGIS-based toolset for the Calibration and Validation of satellite data and algorithms, an ArcView-based capability to identify NEXRAD beam blockage by terrain and obstacles to aviation, and exploring the "Geodatabase" approach to sharing of global hydrometeorological information.
Abstract
Features of
a COTS (Commercial Off-The-Shelf) Geographic Information System (GIS) are exploited
to address traditional problems and tasks in hydrometeorology. Instead of the
variety of unique data formats extant in the meteorological community today,
these data are revisited as common geographic objects – either as points,
lines (arcs), polygons, or raster images and grids. Intrinsic GIS and externally-defined
user functions are used to analyze these data objects, demonstrating that GIS
is more than just a “tool for drawing maps” (the most common misconception).
Our hydromet community has evolved a “do it yourself” strategy to
develop the tools it has needed to display and process hydromet information,
primarily because the hydromet data processing tools did not exist or were cost
prohibitive. We now face a decision to either embrace GIS or adopt its strategies
in our emerging software systems – the main difference in outcomes being
program risk and cost.
Dr. Shipley reviews his experiences with GIS adoption by the meteorological and environmental satellite communities over the past decade. This experience starts with his observation in 1994 that “GIS is too slow and will never have value for meteorological data processing.” Despite that sage observation, GIS strategies have become increasingly popular in meteorological applications, starting with the adoption of GIS data formats by AWIPS, and now including the development of GIS applications at NWS River Forecast Centers (RFC) and Weather Forecast Offices (WFO). The GIS strategy is most recently being extended into the imaging stronghold of Satellite Meteorology and Remote Sensing. Key to the success of a GIS strategy is the adoption of standards for data interchange and interoperability, especially for web applications – reference the Open GIS Consortium at http://www.opengis.org/. A second factor is wide community acceptance and adoption of common tools across disciplines – reference the Commercial Joint Mapping Toolkit (C/JMTK) at http://www.cjmtk.com/ (there’s that map word again). The GIS community is evolving very rapidly, with JAVA interfaces and the possibility of LINUX deployment on the horizon in a future version of ESRI ArcGIS 9.x. What will you be doing in five years?
Bio
John F. Weaver
is a NOAA/NESDIS (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Environmental,
Satellite, Data, and Information Services) research meteorologist working at
the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere at Colorado State University
in Fort Collins, Colorado. The facility has one of the most robust satellite
ground stations in the country, along with a large staff of scientists skilled
in satellite data analysis. It is also a part of the Virtual Institute for Satellite
Integration Training (VISIT). VISIT is a program which develops teletraining
material for National Weather Service forecasters. Mr. Weaver specializes in
developing new techniques and training for forecasting/nowcasting severe weather
including tornadoes, hailstorms, flash floods and severe downslope windstorms.
He earned his B.S. in Mathematics at Colorado State University in 1968, and
an M.S. in Atmospheric Science from the University of Wyoming in 1975. Since
that time he has taken advanced meteorology classes at both the University of
Oklahoma, and at Colorado State.
Abstract
What is the
National Weather Service doing in these times of rapidly changing technology
and falling budgets to maintain high training standards? One solution used by
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA's) Virtual Institute
for Satellite Integration Training (VISIT) is to bring meteorological instructors
remotely into forecast offices using teletraining - a combination of the internet
and a conference phone line. Since VISIT began its teletraining program in April
1999, over 10,000 students have received training certificates in a variety
of meteorological topics. The program has been an unqualified success, and NOAA
plans to build on this distance learning concept in the future.
Bio
Olga Wilhelmi
has been working at NCAR in ESIG since December 1999, first as an Advanced Study
Program fellow and now as a project scientist I. Olga received B.S. in physical
geography and geoecology from Lomonosov Moscow State University in Moscow, Russia,
M.S. in Agricultural Meteorology and Ph.D. in Natural Resource Sciences from
University of Nebraska - Lincoln in the U.S. She is interested in climate, environment,
and society interactions, GIS, and remote sensing. Currently, her research is
primarily focuses on impacts of extreme weather and climate events, drought
vulnerability, and use of GIS in atmospheric sciences. Since 2001, Olga has
been leading NCAR’s GIS Initiative.
Abstract
NCAR’s
GIS Initiative aims to promote and support the use of GIS as both an analysis
and an infrastructure tool in atmospheric research and to address broader issues
of data management and geoinformatics within the geosciences. Recent activities
of the GIS Initiative have built significant momentum in GIS involvement across
NCAR divisions and UCAR programs. This presentation gives an overview of the
GIS Initiative, focuses on rapidly developing GIS activities at NCAR and UCAR,
and discusses how the goals of the initiative fit in overall development of
GIS for atmospheric sciences in the U.S. and abroad.
Bio
Mr. Samuel
P. Williamson is the Federal Coordinator for Meteorological Services and Supporting
Research. He is accountable to the U.S. Congress and the Office of Management
and Budget for systematic coordination and cooperation among 15 Federal Departments
and Agencies with meteorology programs to ensure the Federal Government provides
the best possible weather information and user services. He directs the analysis
and evaluation of federal weather programs, operational requirements and supporting
research to facilitate executive and legislative funding decisions for over
$2.5 billion annually. He reports directly to the Under Secretary of Commerce
for Oceans and Atmosphere, who is also the chairperson of the Federal Committee
for Meteorological Services and Supporting Research (FCMSSR).
Mr. Williamson chairs the Interdepartmental Committee for Meteorological Services and Supporting Research (ICMSSR) and serves as a member and principal advisor to the FCMSSR and the Committee for the Environment and Natural Resources (CENR) of the National Science and Technology Council. Mr. Williamson began his career as a Weather Officer in the United States Air Force Air Weather Service and has served the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in numerous positions for more than 26 years.
For the 1996-1997 academic year, Mr. Williamson was a visiting Executive Fellow at the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government where he studied and researched national security issues that involved science, technology, and public policy.
As a Senior Staff Associate for the National Science Foundation, Mr. Williamson enhanced science education. As a Senior Science Advisor to the Committee on Science of the United States House of Representatives, he helped shape the legislative agenda for science, space, and technology policy.
For more than 12 years, Mr. Williamson was the principal planner of the Tri-departmental Next Generation Weather Radar (NEXRAD) Program from the conception through the initial deployment of the Weather Surveillance Radar (WSR-88D), Doppler Weather Radar System. He directed the NEXRAD Joint System Program Office where he was instrumental in the design, development, test, manufacture, and initial deployment of the WSR-88D. The deployment of the WSR-88D vastly improved the Nation’s detection and warning capability of impending hazardous weather phenomena and was the first major system development and acquisition program among three executive Federal departments: Commerce, Defense, and Transportation.
His education credentials include Bachelors of Science Degrees in mathematics and meteorology from Tennessee State University and North Carolina State University, a Master of Arts degree in management from Webster University, and post graduate studies in engineering technology management at American University.
Mr. Williamson is a retired Senior Military Officer of the District of Columbia Air National Guard.
Abstract
The Office
of the Federal Coordinator for Meteorological Services and Supporting Research
(more commonly referred to as OFCM) is an interdepartmental office established
because Congress and the Executive Office of the President recognized the importance
of full coordination of federal meteorological activities. The mission of this
interagency office is to ensure the effective use of federal meteorological
resources by leading the systematic coordination of operational weather requirements
and services, and supporting research among the federal agencies.
There are 15 federal departments and agencies engaged in meteorological activities that participate in the OFCM’s coordination and cooperation infrastructure, providing representatives who lead and serve on program councils, committees, working groups, and joint action groups. These interagency groups coordinate activities and needs across a set of ten key focus areas targeted at 21st century priorities. These areas are environmental support for homeland security; aviation weather; space weather; weather information for surface transportation; climate analysis, monitoring and services; cooperative research; observing capabilities; modeling and prediction; information technology and communications; and environmental services.
There are several ways the environmental data user community can ensure their needs, requirements, and capabilities are considered when public environmental policy is being developed.
The OFCM interagency coordinating infrastructure provides an avenue for the user community to make their needs, requirements, and capabilities known. The coordinating process takes into consideration inputs received through workshops, forums, conferences, etc. Several examples of this process at work will be discussed.
Another avenue is direct user input to such organizations as the National Academy of Sciences for consideration as they undertake various studies concerning environmental data issues.
Other avenues might be such organizations as industry consortiums. One example is the Open GIS Consortium (OGC), which is an international industry consortium of 257 companies, government agencies and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available geo-processing specifications.
In summary, the OFCM coordinating infrastructure, organizations such as the NAS, and industry consortiums all provide possible avenues for environmental data users to make their needs, requirements, and capabilities known.
Bio
May Yuan is an Associate Professor of Geography, Director of Center for Spatial
Analysis, and Edith Gaylord Presidential Professor of the University of Oklahoma.
Her research interest is in geographic representation, spatiotemporal information
modeling, and applications of geographic information technologies to dynamic
systems. Through supports from NSF, NASA, DoD-NIMA, DoD-Air Force, and DoE,
she has been investigating representation models for dynamic geographic phenomena,
such as wildfires, rainstorms, air-pollution plumes, and landcover change. She
also has been developing methods for spatiotemporal query and analysis on these
phenomena. Currently, she serves as the chair of GIS specialty group in the
American Association of Geographers (AAG) 2002 and serves as the secretary of
the University Consortium for Geographic Information Science (UCGIS) 2003-2005.
May received her B.S. from National Taiwan University and M.A. and Ph.D. from
the State University of New York at Buffalo. More information about May is available
at http://geography.ou.edu/people/myuan.html
Abstract
The concept of geographic information systems (GIS) emerged in early 1960s as
a mapping tool for nature resource inventories and census applications. Since
then, GIS technology has thrived vigorously in governments, private sectors,
and academia. While the technology has become popular in many applications,
most uses still limit to mapping, a powerful means to show where things are
and how they relate spatially. However, there is a suite of GIS concepts that
offer new perspectives to acquire, manage, analyze, present, and disseminate
environmental data. The new suite of GIS concepts is being developed under the
umbrella of geographic information science (GIScience). This talk will highlight
GIS concepts and approaches relevant to geoscience research, education, and
decision making. As a spatially enabling science and technology, GIScience and
GIS promote spatial thinking and analytical approaches to understand spatial
relationships among environmental factors. Examples will demonstrate GIS concepts
in weather and climate to show beyond-mapping applications. These application
examples illustrate only some benefits of GIS applications in environmental
analysis. The full potential of how GIS concepts can enrich environmental research,
education, and decision making has yet to be realized.
Bio
Dr. Batzli
is a geographer with expertise in the integration of GIS, remote sensing, and
land use modeling technologies. His research focuses on the development of visualization
and data discovery technologies for Earth science information with an emphasis
on remote sensing and historical datasets. Recent work includes mapping lake
clarity in Wisconsin through satellite remote sensing and spatial database development.
He served as the Upper Great Lakes - Regional Earth Science Applications Center
(RESAC) project manager for Michigan State University prior to joining the University
of Wisconsin.
Abstract
In this workshop
we will explore Geographical Information Systems with an emphasis on cartographic
visualization and presentation of datasets. Through the hands-on development
of sample projects we will learn about different types of spatial data and how
to find, import, edit, query, relate, and create datasets with standard ESRI
Arc products. We will then develop thematic maps from the data and will cover
topics such as projections, color, scale, and multi-variable symbolization.
This is intended to be a general overview workshop with the primary goal of
exploring some of the basic capabilities of GIS software.
Bio
Theresa Carpenter
is a Hydrologic Engineer with the Hydrologic Research Center, joining the Center
in September 1998. She received her B.S. (1991) and M.S. (1993) Degrees in Civil
Engineering from The University of Iowa. She is actively involved in HRC's hydrologic
modeling efforts on several projects covering locations in California, the Mid-Western
U.S., Peru, and Central America. Prior to joining HRC, Ms. Carpenter was a Hydraulic
Engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island District. Her main
interests are in hydrologic modeling, in particular, the use of distributed
hydrologic models and flood forecasting, the use of radar and satellite data
in such modeling efforts, and the application of climate information in water
resources.
Abstract
This lab will be a combination of a presentation on several
recent HRC projects involving the use of GIS and remotely sensed and/or in-situ
data in hydrologic modeling, and a demonstration of a particular HRC decision
support modeling system for operational precipitation and streamflow forecasting
in Panama. The projects each involve GIS processing of watershed terrain and
environmental data in combination with radar, satellite, or climate data in
support of decision making in the areas of flash flooding, stream flow forecasting
and reservoir management. Current applications are shown for regions of Northern
California, Oklahoma and Central America.
The demonstration portion will illustrate features of the HRC-developed prototype operational forecasting system, PANMAP, which produces real-time rainfall forecasts for the 3,200-km2 Panama Canal Watershed. PANMAP produces mean areal precipitation estimates and forecasts, along with uncertainty estimates derived from state and uncertainty estimators with data assimilation, with hourly resolution for a maximum forecast lead time of 12-hours and for subcatchments of the Canal watershed on scales of 150-400km2. The system gathers various input data including ETA forecasts, surface meteorological observations, upper air radiosondes and weather radar. The precipitation forecasts and associated uncertainty subsequently feed operational hydrologic models for each subcatchment. Lab participants will be able to examine input and PANMAP-derived products within a GIS framework used by operators at the Panama Canal Authority for selected periods of activity. The PCA has been using the PANMAP system operationally since October 1998.
Bio
Professor Bill
Fingerhut recieved his Ph.D. in Atmospheric Sciences at Colorado State University.
He has taught Survey of Meteorology Lab, Computer Applications in Meteorology,
Atmospheric Thermodynamics, Atmospheric Dynamics,
Numerical Weather Prediction, Tropical Meteorology. Bill's professional interests
are computer applications in meteorology, atmospheric dynamics, numerical weather
prediction, tropical meteorology. Some
of the most recent projects that Bill has work on has been the animations of
current numberical model forecasts, web notes for atmospheric Dynamics I, web
notes for Atmospheric Dynamics II, animations of the jet stream, and the McIDAS
scripts for vertical cross-sections, divergence of Q-vectors, etc.
Abstract
Real-time precipitation
forecasts from NWS's operational ETA and AVN models are explored using Unidata's
Integrated Data Viewer, IDV. The exploration is straight forward and intended
to expose users of all levels to both basic and novel features of the IDV. Exhibited
displays include: standard contour plan views, interactive soundings, three
dimensional isosurfaces, vertical cross sections, and interactive IDV displays
embedded in an HTML document.
Bio
Dale Morris
serves as the Program Manager for Public Safety at the Oklahoma Climatological
Survey. In 1996, he helped conceive a unique outreach program to link the meteorological
community with Oklahoma’s public safety agencies (fire service, emergency
management, and law enforcement). Through this program, known as OK-FIRST, public
safety officials across Oklahoma routinely use NEXRAD radar data, products from
the National Weather Service, and information from the Oklahoma Mesonet to make
informed decisions in weather-impacted situations. Through a continuing education
regimen, local officials learn how to interpret the weather products correctly
plus learn how not to use them. OK-FIRST has garnered international attention
for its role in helping to pre-deploy resources and saving lives in a variety
of weather events. OK-FIRST won the prestigious Innovations in American Government
award from Harvard University and the Ford Foundation in 2001.
Abstract
The Oklahoma
Climate Survey at the University of Oklahoma partnered with Oklahoma State University
to implement the Oklahoma Mesonet during the early 1990s. The Mesonet is a world-class
and multipurpose network of 115 automated weather stations across Oklahoma that
report their observations every 15 minutes. Outreach activities based upon the
Mesonet were planned even prior to the network’s inception. A successful
K-12 outreach program (known as EARTHSTORM) initially funded in 1992 led to
the establishment of an award-winning public safety decision-support system
for fire service, law enforcement, and emergency management agencies (OK-FIRST).
Other outreach initiatives have included an agricultural component (AgWeather)
and non-profit electrical cooperatives. Each user community has unique weather
information needs that can be served by today’s modern meteorological
infrastructure. The lab session will showcase a small smorgasbord of activities
designed to illustrate the how the needs of local users of weather information
can be serviced.
Abstract
User-defined
quantities that extend the power of the IDV to analyze data are explored in
this exercise. The Formula feature of the IDV is used for simple calculations
such as the difference of two GOES water vapor images. User-written Jython code
is developed to convert a Level III radar image into a display of rainfall rates
using the Marshall-Palmer distribution. Participants will write Jython code
to calculate isosurfaces of kinetic energy using numerical model wind fields
and temperature data as inputs. Finally participants will create code to define
their own calculated quantity and apply it to a data object.
Bio
Dr. Stefano
Nativi has been teaching at the University of Florence at Prato. He has been
working for the CNR (the Italian National Research Council). He has been working
with the THREDDS project of UNIDATA.
Abstract
Service oriented
approach is briefly introduced; its potentiality to support geoscience-based
applications is considered. The use of such solution for enabling the interoperability
among GIS and Atmospheric Sciences is analysed. Two case studies are presented:
a Decision Support System for Flash Flood early warning, and a Web Coverage
Server (WCS) discovery and navigation system.
Bio
Brian Nelson
is a PhD. candidate at The University of Iowa in Civil and Environmental Engineering
with plans to graduate in August of 2003. Brian will then move to the National
Climatic Data Center (NCDC) to do research as a National Research Council (NRC)
post doc. His research has focused on developing precipitation data from NEXRAD
weather radar data. He has used GIS for browsing, databases, presentation and
modeling of weather radar data and associated geophysical information.
Bio
Rajul Pandya
did his graduate work at University of Washington where his research focused
on convectively-generated gravity waves and their role in the organization of
mid-latitude storms. During a post-doc at NCAR, Pandya became increasingly interested
in education and worked on the VGEE proposal. For 3 years following his Post-doc,
he served as an assistant professor in the Department of Geology and Astronomy
at West Chester University, in West Chester, PA. While at West Chester, Pandya
used the VGEE in an introductory meteorology class. Pandya returned to UCAR
in September of 2002, and holds a joint appointment in the Digital Library for
Earth System Education (DLESE) Program Center and the Unidata Program Center.
Abstract
The VGEE is
a learning environment that helps undergraduate students, especially non-science
majors, learn geoscience by using scientific visualization and real scientific
data sets. The VGEE includes data sets that are tailored for student use, an
online, inquiry-based curriculum to guide students, and a specially designed
interface to a scientific visualization tool (the Integrated Data Viewer, IDV,
developed by Unidata). This interface includes concept models - simple, interactive
models that help students learn basic physics. Students can use these concept
models to probe data in the visualization environment. By helping students 'see'
basic physics in real data, concept models can help students apply theoretical
understandings to real geophysical phenomena. This workshop will focus on hands-on
use of the VGEE.
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