WDTD’s Instructional Transition to Prepare the NWS for Convective Hazard Services

National Weather Service (NWS) forecasters at Weather Forecast Offices (WFOs) are in the process of transitioning all hazard generation capability to the new Hazard Services framework. Recent Advanced Weather Informational Processing System (AWIPS) software builds over the last few years have provided hydrological, non-precipitation, and winter weather Hazard Services capability, and convective hazard generation is next. In 2023, 12 WFOs will be installing and testing the initial release of convective Hazard Services, and the full operational rollout to all WFOs is anticipated in 2024. The Warning Decision Training Division (WDTD) has been tasked with developing Hazard Services training for the initial field test and the operational rollout to all WFOs. To ensure the NWS is able to effectively issue severe weather warnings and statements, focal points need to be trained to configure Hazard Services for convective operations, and forecasters need to be trained to issue severe weather warnings and statements using convective Hazard Services.

To address the unique needs of the initial field test of convective Hazard Services, WDTD is building off recent success using web services cloud instances for hosting online AWIPS training and experimental versions of AWIPS software for testing and practice. In the upcoming convective Hazard Services field test, each WFO selected two or more of their favorite convective radar events for practice. WDTD downloaded archived level 2 radar data and recreated the operational radar products using the Radar Product Generator (RPG) for later playback in the cloud. WDTD created a cloud instance for each WFO containing the new Hazard Services convective software, their latest AWIPS localization, and the new radar data.

Training development is currently underway for the initial convective Hazard Services field test planned for 2023. To support the focal points migrating existing WarnGen configurations to the new convective Hazard Services, WDTD is developing extensive reference materials and job sheets. To support forecasters learning to use convective Hazard Services for warning operations, WDTD is developing follow-along videos with a data case for hands-on learning. One unique aspect of the initial forecaster training is the new CLoud Automated Scheduler (CLAS) to facilitate scheduling and managing cloud sessions taken on WDTD’s cloud instance. With CLAS, forecasters schedule their cloud training on an LDAP-authenticated web server. CLAS will then create/start/stop a disposable cloud instance from an web-based machine image and will provide the necessary cloud access information. After taking the initial training on WDTD’s cloud instance, the forecasters will use their WFO’s dedicated cloud instance with their local configurations and local radar cases for routine practice and testing.

In this presentation we will discuss the successes of using the cloud to support the training and testing of the initial field test. We will also discuss the lessons learned for the final training solution and potential overlap with the separate Weather Event Simulator in the cloud development ongoing at WDTD.