Software Release: METplus 2.0 with MET 8.0 and METviewer 2.8 components

2018-09-28 | The Model Evaluation Tools (MET) development team at the DTC is pleased to announce the release of a multi-component verification capability called METplus.  It includes METplus version 2.0, MET version 8.0 and METviewer version 2.8. METplus is a suite of Python wrappers and ancillary scripts to enhance the user's ability to quickly set-up and run MET.  METviewer is a database and display system for aggregating and plotting MET output.  In the future, a user will be able to check everything out through the METplus GitHub… Read More

Software Release: GMTB public release of CCPP v2.0

2018-08-30 | The DTC’s Global Model Test Bed (GMTB) is pleased to announce the public release of the Common Community Physics Package (CCPP) v2.0, containing a library of physical parameterizations (CCPP-Physics), and the framework that connects it to host models (CCPP-Framework). In this release, the CCPP has been bundled with the GMTB Single Column Model (SCM) v2.1, and contains updated physical parameterizations of the GFS suite plus the GFDL microphysics scheme. The CCPP has also been integrated with the experimental version of… Read More

Lead Story: Hierarchical Model Development and Single Column Models

Summer | Earth system models connect the atmosphere, ocean, and land, and depend on proper representations of dynamics and physics, initial conditions, and interactions of these processes to predict future conditions. Standard meteorological variables are used to validate typical numerical weather prediction models but are gross measures of these countless interactions and limit their usefulness for guiding model improvement. Some fraction of error in these metrics can be the result of specific physical parameterizations, but it can… Read More

Did you know?: The Next Generation Global Prediction System

Summer 2018 | The Next Generation Global Prediction System (NGGPS) multi-year Strategic Implementation Plan (SIP) connects federal and academic experts in the numerical weather prediction community to support the end-to-end functionality of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Production Suite. The goal of the SIP is to help evolve the NGGPS into a Unified Forecast System (UFS) for operations and research. The SIP governance includes UFS Working Groups who represent the essential science, technical, and design… Read More

Director's Corner: NOAA Embraces Community Modeling to Advance Weather Prediction

Brian Gross, Acting Director EMC

Summer 2018 | NOAA and the National Weather Service (NWS) are embarking on a new strategy of community engagement for developing the numerical weather prediction models that provide NWS forecasters with the best possible guidance. By engaging the broader numerical modeling community, NWS will leverage the vast modeling expertise that resides therein, since each model developer offers a unique perspective about modeling challenges and possible solutions.

Who's Who: Guoqing Ge

Summer 2018 | Guoqing Ge on Trail Ridge Road

Bridges to Operations: Tests Conducted at DTC Lead to Operational Implementation of Innovations in Physics and Data Assimilation in HWRF

Summer 2018 | The Hurricane Weather Research and Forecast system (HWRF) is one of NOAA’s operational models used to predict the track, intensity, and structure of tropical cyclones. Each winter, scientists at NOAA’s Environmental Modeling Center (EMC), the Developmental Testbed Center (DTC), and NOAA’s Hurricane Research Division (HRD) perform testing and evaluation (T&E) on possible changes to the HWRF physics schemes, dynamic core, and data assimilation system that have the potential to improve HWRF predictions. Many of these… Read More

Visitors: Impact of Vertical Advection Schemes of the Hydrometeors on the Simulated Hurricane Structure and Intensity

Visitor: Shaowu Bao

Summer 2018 | Advection is a computationally expensive process in Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) models. Therefore, time-sensitive operational forecast models sometimes sum up the hydrometeors, including cloud water, rainwater, ice and snow, prior to calling the advection scheme. For this configuration, the model only needs to calculate the advection of the total condensate. However, the impact of such a time-saving technique has not been systematically evaluated. With the release of HWRF 3.9a, a version of the operational HWRF… Read More

Community Connections: 2018 DTC Community Unified Forecast System Test Plans and Metrics Workshop

July 30 - August 1, 2018

Summer 2018 | The 2018 DTC Community Unified Forecast System Test Plan and Metrics Workshop was held at NOAA’s National Center for Weather and Climate Prediction (NCEP) on July 30 - August 1, 2018. The major goal of this workshop was to work towards a community test plan with common validation and verification metrics for the emerging Unified Forecast System (UFS). The plan will serve as a guide for the Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) community for testing and evaluating new developments for the UFS models and components by… Read More

Announcement: 2018 DTC Community Unified Forecast System Test Plan and Metrics Workshop

July 30 - August 1, 2018, National Center for Weather and Climate Prediction (NCWCP), College Park, MD

2018-05-01 | The Developmental Testbed Center (DTC) is pleased to announce an upcoming community workshop on Numerical Weather Prediction test plan and metrics for model validation and verification. Now available: Agenda | Registration | Logistics The workshop, to take place at the NCWCP in College Park, MD, will be held for two and a half days prior to the NGGPS Strategic Implementation Planning (SIP) meeting at the same location. The major goal of this workshop is to develop a community test plan with common validation and… Read More

Software Release: Release of the Community Standalone GFDL Vortex Tracker Code Version 3.9a

2018-04-13 | The DTC’s HWRF team is pleased to announce the public release of the Community standalone GFDL Vortex Tracker code version 3.9a. The standalone tracker can be used to determine properties (location, intensity, structure etc) of forecast tropical… Read More

Software Release: Release of the Common Community Physics Package (CCPP)

A Library of Physical Parameterizations for Atmospheric Numerical Models

2018-04-09 | The DTC’s Global Model Test Bed (GMTB) is pleased to announce the public release of the Common Community Physics Package (CCPP), a library of physical parameterizations for atmospheric numerical models. It is distributed with a framework that enables its use with any host application for which an interface is written. In this release, the CCPP has been bundled with the GMTB Single Column Model (SCM) and contains all the physical parameterizations used in the current operational NOAA Global Forecast System (GFS). For more… Read More

Lead Story: Keeping up with Model Testing & Evaluation Advances: New Verification Displays

Winter 2014 | As numerical model predictions and functions proliferate and move toward ever higher resolution, verification techniques and procedures must also advance and adapt.

Lead Story: THE 2013 HURRICANE WRF

Summer 2013 | As the 2013 hurricane season continues in the North Atlantic and eastern North Pacific basins, a newly minted HWRF model is providing forecasts for the National Hurricane Center (NHC) on a new machine and with significant code additions. On July 24, the operational HWRF went live on the Weather and Climate Operational Supercomputing System (WCOSS). A research version for testing continues in use on the jet computers at the NOAA ESRL Global Systems Division. New, more efficient code promises to provide… Read More