Mini Workshop Explores Possibly Transitioning HMT Research via FFMP


November 14, 2008


Screen shot of FFMP Basin Table and Button Color Threshold GUI. A view of the basin data in one county is shown.

The NOAA Earth System Research Laboratories hosted a "mini workshop" on November 13-14, 2008 in Boulder, CO to explore the possibility of using Flash Flood Monitoring and Prediction (FFMP), an operational tool used by the National Weather Service (NWS), as a mechanism for implementing key Hydrometeorological Testbed (HMT) program findings and developments leading to improved NWS operations. One important theme that was addressed was how detailed vertical profiles of information can improve and/or create gridded information leading to improvements in NWS forecasts and warnings. A second theme was to begin to integrate and utilize high-resolution probabilistic quantitative precipitation forecasts (QPF). Key outcomes include identifying opportunities to collaborate via HMT-West, describing what a demonstration in the Monterey WFO (and possibly other WFOs) might look like, and determining an actionable path forward.

HMT is a NOAA demonstration program designed to improve flood forecasting by accelerating research and development of new technologies, forecast models, and scientific results from the research community and infusing them into daily operations of the National Weather Service, including Weather Forecast Offices, River Forecast Centers and the National Centers for Environmental Prediction. HMT-West has led to the development of several new and promising tools that provide a detailed look at what is happening in the atmosphere at and above the surface: processes critical to the formation of heavy rainfall. Operational requirements in the NWS require the field offices to produce gridded information. This workshop is an opportunity to explore how these new observational and predictive tools can improve gridded products. FFMP is a relatively new operational tool in the NWS that could enable HMT to plug into NWS operations more efficiently, and demonstrate new capabilities.

NOAA's Weather and Water Mission includes goals for improving the predictability of floods to better protect the public from losses of life and property. In response to NWS needs, and to a specific request from within the NWS to explore the synergies between FFMP and HMT, this mini-workshop is a potential means for transitioning HMT research tools into operations using existing FFMP technology as a platform.

Contact: Tim Schneider More Information: