Web enhanced automated convective gate forecasts

The Atlanta Center Weather Service Unit (CWSU) provides convective forecast products to the Traffic Management Unit for the arrival and departure gates at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, GA and Charlotte Douglas International Airport in Charlotte, NC. The convective gate forecasts are created manually three times a day by the CWSU forecaster for a nine hour period, and display the arrival and departure “gates” at each airfield, along with the timing and likelihood of when the respective arrival or departure corridor will be impacted by convection. To automate the process, an automated gate forecast using the High-Resolution Rapid Refresh model was developed. This automated tactical decision aid allows for hourly updates to the convective gate forecast, providing timely information for re-routing aircraft and a consistent forecast among several products the FAA uses. The automated convective gate forecast is then displayed over current radar mosaics in a translucent graphic that changes shades according to the likelihood of convection for that time frame. In addition, the Web based graphic allows other layers to be added, such as warnings and advisories, reducing the amount of products the air traffic manager or controller has to reference. This presentation will include a description of how the automated gate forecasts are produced, with some examples.