Click here to go to the EMC/MMAB homepage Technical Implementation Notice 09-30...Amended

  510 NOUS41 KWBC 221200
  PNSWSH
  
  TECHNICAL IMPLEMENTATION NOTICE 09-30...AMENDED
  NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HEADQUARTERS WASHINGTON DC
  800 AM EDT THU OCT 22 2009
  
  TO:  SUBSCRIBERS:  -FAMILY OF SERVICES
                     -NOAA WEATHER WIRE SERVICE   
                     -EMERGENCY MANAGERS WEATHER INFORMATION NETWORK           
                     -NOAAPORT          
                     -OTHER NWS PARTNERS...USERS AND EMPLOYEES
  
  FROM:     TIM MCCLUNG
            SCIENCE PLANS BRANCH CHIEF
            OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
            
  SUBJECT:  AMENDED: UPGRADE TO REAL TIME OCEAN FORECAST SYSTEM:  
            EFFECTIVE NOVEMBER 4 2009
  
  REFER TO: TECHNICAL IMPLEMENTATION NOTICE /TIN/ 09-30
            TRANSMITTED ON SEPTEMBER 14 2009.
  
  AMENDED TO POSTPONE THE IMPLEMENTATION DATE UNTIL WEDNESDAY 
  NOVEMBER 4 2009.
  
  ON NOVEMBER 4, 2009...BEGINNING WITH THE 0000 UTC COORDINATED UNIVERSAL
  TIME /UTC/ RUN...THE NATIONAL CENTERS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PREDICTION
  /NCEP/ WILL MAKE SEVERAL CHANGES TO THE REAL TIME OCEAN FORECAST SYSTEM
  /RTOFS/. THESE CHANGES ARE EXPECTED TO IMPROVE PERFORMANCE OF THE
  ATLANTIC FORECAST AND ASSIMILATION SYSTEM.  THE MODEL CHANGES INCLUDE:
  
  1. CHANGE SEA SURFACE HEIGHT /SSH/ ASSIMILATION QUALITY CONTROL
  CRITERIA AND MASK TO EXPOSE MORE OF THE REGION TO SSH DATA.
  
  2. RESET BASIN AVERAGE SSH AND UPDATE MEAN DYNAMIC TOPOGRAPHY TO BETTER
  MATCH OPEN BOUNDARY CONDITIONS.
  
  3. ADD BOGUS SSH ANOMALY DATA OFFSHORE OF THE MID ATLANTIC BIGHT TO
  CONTROL GULF STREAM PATH.
  
  4. UPDATE TIDAL ELEVATIONS AND TRANSPORT BOUNDARY CONDITIONS FROM THE
  GLOBAL INVERSE TIDE MODEL TPX07.
  
  THE COMBINED EFFECT OF THESE CHANGES HAS RESULTED IN THE FOLLOWING
  IMPROVEMENTS TO MODEL PERFORMANCE:
  
  1. SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN SPURIOUS CURRENTS AND EDDIES IN THE
  TROPICAL ATLANTIC AND EQUATORIAL ZONES.
  
  2. MORE REALISTIC GULF STREAM AND LOOP CURRENT IN THE GULF OF MEXICO
  WHICH COMPARES WELL WITH OBSERVED PATHS.
  
  3. BETTER AGREEMENT WITH MEASURED TRANSPORTS FROM AOML CABLE DATA NEAR
  27 N FROM FLORIDA TO THE BAHAMAS.
  
  4. SIGNIFCANTLY BETTER REPRESENTATION OF WATER TEMPERATURE AND SALINITY
  AT THE WORLD OCEAN CIRCULATION EXPERIMENT /WOCE/ SECTIONS.
  
  5. REDUCTION IN SST ERRORS WHEN COMPARED TO INSITU DATA.
  
  6. SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN REPRODUCTION OF MESOSCALE FEATURES NEAR
  U.S. EAST COAST AS SHOWN IN INDEPENDENT SSH ANALYSIS BASED ON JASON-1
  AND JASON-2 ALTIMETER DATA.
  
  DATA FORMAT VOLUME AND DELIVERY WILL NOT BE IMPACTED BY THIS
  IMPLEMENTATION.
  
  A CONSISTENT PARALLEL FEED OF DATA WILL BECOME AVAILABLE ON THE NCEP
  FTP SERVER ONCE THE MODEL IS RUNNING IN PARALLEL ON THE NCEP CENTRAL
  COMPUTING SYSTEM ON SEPTEMBER 15 2009. AT THIS TIME THE PARALLEL DATA
  WILL BECOME AVAILABLE VIA THE FOLLOWING URL /USE LOWERCASE/:
  
  
  FTP://FTP.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/PUB/DATA/NCCF/COM/OFS/PARA
  
  THE ENVIRONMENTAL MODELING CENTER /EMC/ HAS A PUBLICLY AVAILABLE
  WEBSITE WHICH CAN PROVIDE USERS MORE INFORMATION CONCERNING THE RTOFS
  /USE LOWERCASE/:
  
  
  HTTP://POLAR.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/OFS/INDEX.SHTML
  
  NCEP ENCOURAGES ALL USERS TO ENSURE THEIR DECODERS ARE FLEXIBLE AND ARE
  ABLE TO ADEQUATELY HANDLE CHANGES IN CONTENT...PARAMETER FIELDS
  CHANGING ORDER...CHANGES IN THE SCALING FACTOR COMPONENT WITHIN THE PDS
  OF THE GRIB FILES AND ANY VOLUME CHANGES WHICH MAY OCCUR. THESE
  ELEMENTS MAY CHANGE WITH FUTURE NCEP MODEL IMPLEMENTATIONS. NCEP WILL
  MAKE EVERY ATTEMPT TO ALERT USERS TO THESE CHANGES PRIOR TO ANY
  IMPLEMENTATIONS.
  
  FOR QUESTIONS REGARDING THE SCIENTIFIC CONTENT OF THE RTOFS...PLEASE
  CONTACT:
  
      AVICHAL MEHRA
      NCEP/EMC
      CAMP SPRINGS MARYLAND 20746
      301-763-8000 X7208
      
      AVICHAL.MEHRA@NOAA.GOV
  
  FOR QUESTIONS REGARDING THE DATAFLOW ASPECTS OF THESE DATA
  SETS...PLEASE CONTACT:
  
      REBECCA COSGROVE
      NCEP/NCO DATAFLOW TEAM
      CAMP SPRINGS MARYLAND 20746
      301-763-8000 X 7198
      
      NCEP.LIST.PMB-DATAFLOW@NOAA.GOV
  
  
  NWS NATIONAL TECHNICAL IMPLEMENTATION NOTICES ARE ONLINE AT /USE
  LOWERCASE/: 
   
  HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/OS/NOTIF.HTM 
  $$