Helping Prepare Users for the GOES-R Series

The capabilities of the GOES-R satellite series represent a major improvement over the current GOES series and bring a number of challenges and opportunities for the meteorological communities. To help meet these challenges a wide range of training activities have been developed at the University of Wisconsin (UW)-Madison. Scientists at the Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS) in the Space Science and Engineering Center (SSEC) at UW-Madison collaborating with collocated partners from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)'s Advanced Satellite Products Branch (ASPB) are coordinating with colleagues in the National Weather Service to prepare operational (and other) users for the GOES-R Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI). These tools include interactive training web applications (webapps), distance learning modules, specialized training software, and ABI band fact sheets. These tools have aided the team's delivery of short courses and NWS training sessions. The ABI band fact sheets summarize the pertinent operational information associated with each band. The specialized HTML5 webapps demonstrate the temporal, spatial, and spectral information content of the ABI. The one-day in-person short courses have been associated with the American Meteorological Society (AMS) Annual Meeting and Broadcast Meteorology Conferences. The distance learning modules cover a wide range of pertinent topics, including the basic operations of the ABI. NWS forecasters, including at Guam and Hawaii, and other personnel were trained using satellite familiarization software developed at the SSEC. The goal of these activities is to improve Day One User Readiness to better use the ABI information and for a better informed public.