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[Support #IWD-747852]: Software to Analyze NLDN data

Hi Waylon,

re:
> Based on your website at
> www.unidata.ucar.edu/data/lightning.html?printer, I can contact you
> regarding the use of Unidata software to analyze lightning data. I
> already have software to extract lightning data from NLDN output
> contained in netCDF files. However, I want to use another software
> program to validate my initial results, in connection with a project.

What is the original format of your NLDN data?  The Unidata community
of US universities receives their NLDN data as text bulletins in the
Unidata Internet Data Distribution system.  This data is then converted
into a format that is usable by the display and analysis package that
the user runs.

> Could you provide a list of software programs that can be run on the
> command-line in a Linux environment that will extract lightning data for
> a particular horizontal area defined by latitude/longitude values?

The two display and analysis packages we support that provide facilities
for decoding of the IDD-delivered NLDN data are GEMPAK and McIDAS.  We can
give you access to GEMPAK, but not McIDAS since rur license with UW-SSEC
limits us to making McIDAS available to educational institutions.

> I
> have latitude/longitude data that define the four corners of horizontal
> boxes of size 20-km x 20-km. For each box, I want to be able to input
> the latitude/longitude values into a command-line software program,
> which will output lightning data that exist only within that box/area.

If you are looking for a package that reads your netCDF files, then
GEMPAK is not what you need.  Instead, you could try using one of the
netCDF analysis packages listed in the netCDF section of our website:

Unidata HomePage
http://www.unidata.ucar.edu

  netCDF HomePage
  http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/software/netcdf

    Software for manipulating or displaying netCDF data
    http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/software/netcdf/software.html

If a "quick and dirty" look at your netCDF data would suffice, you could
try using thehe 'ncdump' facility of netCDF. 'ncdump' can, among other
things list out the values for variables contained in a netCDF.  You
could then use the dump output in conjunction with a Unix shell script
to get the values of the variable(s) you want to compare to your other
output.  

> The source files that I have are netCDF-formatted files that contain the
> NLDN data.

I think that one of the packages listed in the link above would be your
best bet for analyzing your netCDF-formatted NLDN data.


> Any help that you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

I hope that this helped...

> --
> **********************************************************************
> * Waylon G. Collins                  Voice: (361)289-0959            *
> * NOAA/National Weather Service      E-Mail: address@hidden *
> * 300 Pinson Drive                                                   *
> * Corpus Christi, TX 78406                                           *
> * USA                                                                *
> **********************************************************************

Cheers,

Tom
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Ticket Details
===================
Ticket ID: IWD-747852
Department: Support netCDF
Priority: Normal
Status: Closed