AWIPS Validation Efforts at COMET

The COMET Program has been tasked by the National Weather Service (NWS) to perform a one-year validation of the AWIPS meteorological workstation. The validation focuses on the AWIPS volume browser, which ingests, manipulates, and displays model data. This effort includes

• Examining the displayed model fields to determine accuracy
• Documenting the algorithms used by the modelers and AWIPS software
• Responding to user questions and comments

In early May 1999, a report covering Phase 1 of the validation was submitted to NWS, detailing the examination of basic fields (temperature, height, wind, and relative humidity) in AWIPS and a comparison to displays using GEMPAK. The study found that the basic fields are being correctly ingested and displayed. The report can be found on the NWS MetEd Web Site at http://meted.ucar.edu/awips/validate.

In contrast to the findings of the Phase 1 study, preliminary investigation in Phase 2 of several derived thermodynamic fields shows that there are significant differences between both models and display software. Further, forecasters in the field have reported some difficulties in understanding the various algorithms and knowing which displays to believe. Currently, efforts are underway to

• Continue the validation of derived meteorological fields, including thermodynamic fields, difference fields, and vertically integrated fields
• Update and expand the NWS MetEd Web page for AWIPS Validation
• Set up a structure for AWIPS users to transmit questions and comments about the AWIPS algorithms to COMET staff for investigation

This paper will summarize the validation methods and demonstrate examples of any findings of interest to the meteorological community. This paper is funded by cooperative agreement #NA87WD0082 from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The views expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of NOAA or any of its subagencies.