August 25, 2006
HPWREN Collaborates with NOAA's National Weather Service in
Obtaining Valuable Real-time Data
For some time the National
Weather Service (NWS), part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), has used HPWREN real-time camera network
and meteorological stations to be more aware of the current weather
conditions. HPWREN equipment has been especially useful in remote
locations where knowledge of the weather conditions has always been
lacking. It is the federal duty of the NWS to issue warnings to
reduce or eliminate the loss of life and property of residents and
visitors from the adverse impacts of weather. Forecasters at the
NWS immediately recognize the value of seeing clouds, thunderstorms,
and fog develop and dissipate, as well as local ground impacts,
such as snowfall and flooding streams, by using the cameras and
meteorological stations.
Early morning fog and its dissipation is visible in these
September 28, 2004 images taken by a west-pointing camera
on Lyons Peak. The left 6:00AM photo shows the moon-lit
fog, with the moon setting in the middle image around
6:36AM. By the 8:36AM time of the right image the fog
already has significantly dispersed.
|
In the summer of 2006, data from some of these meteorological
stations began to be transmitted directly to NWS workstations,
increasing the utility of these data by NWS forecasters. In addition,
these data became included in a larger network of surface observations
used widely by the entire meteorology community in the western U.S.
These data are collected and organized in a way that is very useful,
not only to forecasters monitoring the weather, but to external
users via the Internet.
This December 28, 2004 series of images from a San Diego
State University's Santa Margarita Ecological Reserve camera
show quick river water rising as it happens as a result of
rain during flash flood incidents. The left image from 10:25AM
shows the river in approximately its usual state, easy to
cross on foot or in a car. About four minutes later at 10:29AM
(middle image) the river already is basically not passable,
be it on foot or by car. The right image shows further
significant water level increases less than two hours later
by 12:15PM. At that time river crossing attempts clearly would
have a high likelihood of being fatal.
|
Numerous microclimates in a varied landscape are influenced by
topography, proximity to the ocean, latitude and elevation. And
nowhere is this more apparent than in Southern California. With
greater instrumentation throughout the region, forecasters can
ascertain and verify the exact weather conditions much more thoroughly
in such a geographically diverse region. As a result, more accurate
forecasts and warnings can be issued.
An important National Weather Services emphasis in southern
California is weather prediction and situation reporting
in support of firefighting activities for such wildfire-prone
areas. While these images were not taken via network
cameras, various HPWREN-accessible cameras have played
significant roles to situation-awareness during fire
incidents for multiple agencies. Recently added dynamic time-lapse
animations at
/cameras, instigated
by suggestions from National Weather Services staff,
improve such abilities even further.
|
With archive and animation capabilities provided by HPWREN, the NWS
can conduct research on particular weather phenomena, such as severe
thunderstorms, cloud formation and dissipation, heavy rain events
and flooding, wildfires, and wind patterns. Researchers can study
a particular event after the fact. With greater knowledge and
understanding of these phenomena, forecasters can receive training
that will enable greater accuracy and utility of future forecasts
and warnings.
Mt. Laguna is experiencing snow and ice on this March
13, 2006 winter morning. The left 5:58AM image shows the
snow bathed in the colorful light of the rising sun, with
ice still obstructing the view of the camera. The 7:34AM
image in the middle shows a less obstructed view, and by
the time of the right 5:25PM image, ice is seen crashing
off the tower the camera is on, and onto the rim of a
microwave antenna.
|
HPWREN has literally opened up a new vision of weather monitoring
for NWS forecasters in San Diego. The cameras and additional
meteorological stations have vastly improved the observational
capability of the NWS in this region.
Miguel Miller
Forecaster
National Weather Service San Diego
back to top
back to HPWREN news |