Mobile Device Access to Real-time Weather Products using a Web Map Service

Recent advances in web-enabled handheld mobile devices have revolutionized the availability of real-time geophysical data to a global spectrum of government agencies and public institutions. So called 'Smart Phone' technology can now provide a link between sources of advanced remotely sensed environmental products and end users independent of location. Tailored displays of current conditions for remote, data poor regions can be delivered in a timely manner. Field research can be guided using these products ensuring efficient use of resources.

Over the past five years the Space Science and Engineering Center (SSEC) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison has been involved in an independent study directed towards the creation and dissemination of time-critical meteorological products specifically tailored for mobile devices. The PDA Animated Weather (PAW) service is designed to be a technology demonstrator for current and ongoing research being conducted at the Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS), SSEC and other associated institutions. The site contains a collection of real-time products that are a blend of traditionally observed, measured, and computed fields which are enhanced using remotely sensed derivatives.

To maintain existing service performance while extending the product suite to include an expanding collection of enhanced products, SSEC/CIMSS has moved towards a generic production facility. This facility takes advantage of advances in map server technology and increased performance standards on a variety of client devices. We have created a transportable Web Map Service (WMS) environment that provides researchers with a generic interface while maintaining the continuity of the product suite. The WMS provides a standard delivery method for display of multi-layered fields on platforms from desktops to mobile devices. This environment supports capabilities for advanced manipulation of these fields including animation, dynamic zoom, roam and transparency.