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-------- Original Message --------
530
NOUS41 KWBC 301400
PNSWSH
Public Information Statement
National Weather Service Headquarters Washington DC
953 AM EDT Fri Sep 30 2011
To: Subscribers:
- Family of Services
- NOAA Weather Wire Service
- Emergency Managers Weather Information Network
- NOAAPORT
Other NWS Partners and NWS Employees
From: Eli Jacks
Chief, Fire and Public Weather Services Branch
Subject: Experimental Ice Accumulation Grids to be Added
to the National Digital Forecast Database (NDFD),
for CONUS Only Effective October 12, 2011
Effective Wednesday, October 12, 2011, at 1400 Coordinated
Universal Time (UTC), Ice Accumulation grids will be added to
NDFD on an experimental basis at a number of NWS Weather
Forecast Offices (WFOs) over the Conterminous United States
(CONUS) only. The WFOs issuing these grids are shown in the
Product Description Document (PDD) available online at:
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/winter/ice.pdf
The experimental Ice Accumulation grids are the expected average
ice thickness on all exposed surfaces (in hundredths of inches)
during a 6 hour period. An Ice Accumulation grid will be
specified whenever at least a trace of ice accumulation is
forecast for any hour during a valid period. The Ice
Accumulation grids will be added to the NDFD CONUS sector and to
the 16 pre-defined NDFD CONUS subsectors for each 6-hour period
out to 48 hours from 00 UTC Day 1.
More details regarding these new elements are available in the
PDD in the online catalog of experimental NWS products and
services at:
http://products.weather.gov/viewliste.php
With this implementation, these forecasts will be available from
NDFD in the standard methods:
- GRIdded Binary version 2 (GRIB2) files via Hypertext Transfer
Protocol (HTTP) and File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
- eXtensible Markup Language (XML) via Simple Object Access
Protocol (SOAP) and Representational State Transfer (REST)
- Graphics via web browser
Users who pull NDFD elements in GRIB2 format, either via the
Internet or via the Family of Services server access service may
need to update their procedures and scripts to access these new
elements.
For customers who key on the World Meteorological Organization
super heading to access NDFD elements, the super headings for
the experimental Ice Accumulation grids are:
Geographic Area WMO Header
--------------- ----------
Central Great Lakes YZFZ98 KWBN
Central Mississippi Valley YZHZ98 KWBN
Central Plains YZKZ98 KWBN
Central Rockies YZNZ98 KWBN
CONUS YZUZ98 KWBN
Eastern Great Lakes YZEZ98 KWBN
Mid-Atlantic YZCZ98 KWBN
Northeast YZBZ98 KWBN
Northern Plains YZJZ98 KWBN
Northern Rockies YZMZ98 KWBN
Pacific Northwest YZPZ98 KWBN
Pacific Southwest YZQZ98 KWBN
Southeast YZDZ98 KWBN
Southern Mississippi Valley YZIZ98 KWBN
Southern Plains YZLZ98 KWBN
Southern Rockies YZOZ98 KWBN
Upper Mississippi Valley YZGZ98 KWBN
Customers who use the NDFD in XML via Web service or the online
graphical NDFD images can use the same methods they currently
use to acquire these new experimental elements. The NDFD Ice
Accumulation graphics will be labeled experimental.
General information on accessing and using NDFD elements is
available online at:
http://ndfd.weather.gov/technical.htm
If October 12, 2011 is declared a critical weather day, this
implementation may be postponed. In that case, partners and
users will be notified of that decision via an updated Public
Information Statement as far in advance as possible.
Comments and feedback on the experimental NDFD Ice Accumulation
grids will be accepted through May 1, 2012. Links to online
surveys for NDFD customers are:
- GRIB2 users:
http://www.weather.gov/survey/nws-survey.php?code=ndfd-grids
- Users OF XML SOAP service:
http://www.weather.gov/survey/nws-survey.php?code=xmlsoap
- NDFD online graphics:
http://www.weather.gov/survey/nws-survey.php?code=gfp
These new Ice Accumulation grids will remain experimental until
all feedback is assessed and a technical analysis is completed.
At that time, the NWS will determine whether to transition these
experimental elements to operational status, discontinue them,
or revise and retain them as experimental elements.
For general questions regarding NDFD data, please email:
NWS.NDFD@xxxxxxxx
For technical questions regarding NDFD data, please contact:
David Ruth
Chief, Mesoscale Prediction Branch
NOAA/NWS Office of Science and Technology
Silver Spring, Maryland 20910
David.Ruth@xxxxxxxx
For general questions regarding the Ice Accumulation grids or
this PNS, please contact:
Andy Horvitz
Fire and Public Weather Services Branch
NOAA/NWS Office of Climate Water and Weather Services
Silver Spring, Maryland 20910
Andy.Horvitz@xxxxxxxx
National Public Information Notices are online at:
http://www.weather.gov/os/notif.htm
$$
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