Using Environmental Data for Education, Research, and Decision Making. The Oklahoma Climatological Survey Norman, Oklahoma

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1 Using Environmental Data for Education, Research, and Decision Making The Oklahoma Climatological Survey Norman, Oklahoma

2 Mark invited us! Why OCS?

3 Oklahoma Senate Bill 547 Mark invited us! (Mark is not in SB 547) To acquire, archive, process and disseminate, in the most cost effective way possible, all climate and weather information which is or could be of value to policy and decision makers in the state; To act as the representative of the state in all climatological and meteorological matters both within and outside the state when requested to do so by the legislative or executive branches of the state government;

4 Oklahoma Senate Bill 547 To prepare, publish and disseminate periodic regular climate summaries for those individuals, agencies, and organizations whose activities are related to the welfare of the state and are affected by climate and weather; To conduct and report on studies of climate and weather phenomena of significant socioeconomic importance to the state;

5 Oklahoma Senate Bill 547 To evaluate the significance of natural and manmade, deliberate and inadvertent changes or modifications in important features of the climate and weather affecting the state, and to report this information to those agencies and organizations in the state who are likely to be affected by such changes or modifications; AND

6 To maintain and operate the Oklahoma Mesonet

7 115 stations - at least one in every county

8 Parameters to serve multi-agency needs Air Temperature (1.5 m) Relative Humidity (1.5 m) Wind Speed (10 m) Wind Direction (10 m) Rainfall Solar Radiation Barometric Pressure Soil Temperature (10 cm bare) Soil Temperature (10 cm sod) Air Temperature (9 m) Wind Speed (2 m) Soil Moisture (5, 25, 60, and 75 cm) Soil Temperature (5 cm bare) Soil Temperature (5 cm sod) Soil Temperature (30 cm sod)

9 Visualization Tools WxScope Web Plug-in

10 and the requisite training

11 Unidata 2008 Where the Oklahoma Climate Survey fits: Endeavor 1: new data sets, partnerships, support in less technologically sophisticated environments. (and less financially sophisticated environments) Endeavor 2: web based training, simplify installation, etc. Endeavor 4: visualization software From M. Ramamurthy slides 6/23/2003

12 Decisions Impacting Lives and Property Situation Awareness

13 Test your expertise: Mid June in the southern plains Thunderstorms develop during the afternoon...drop hail (up to quarter size) and then begin to weaken. It is now after dark. OU SoM employee calls; sees tornado in storm 15 miles to the northeast... wrapped in rain and occasionally illuminated by lightning... moving very little. He wants a tornado warning. Storm about 65 miles from radar, no rotation apparent. Reflectivities down below 40 dbz. Storm has no history of producing tornadoes... No boundary interaction apparent...

14 If you blow off the report: Tornado Strikes Without Warning! Weather Service ignored pleas from trained storm spotter! I tried to tell em. I called em every five minutes! They just wouldn t listen! said Mark Laufersweiler, School of Meteorology, OU.

15 When in actuality NWS puts out Tornado Warning on Grain Silo!! Town forced to take cover from menacing tower of corn! Well it sorta looked like a tornado! Anyway, they re the ones with that $3M radar... why didn t they just use it? said Mark Laufersweiler, ex-ou SoM Employee. CO-OP

16 Excellent Decisions Situation Awareness Begin with research and education

17 OCS Research Partners By 1993, the USDA became the first federal partner with a decision to modernize their historical Micronet across the Little Washita Watershed. DOE/ARM also has been a continual partner because the Mesonet made it possible to shift more of the ARM/CART SGP site into Kansas. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have continually supported their access to quality-assured rainfall data. and don t forget the mother of Unidata! - NSF! Others include DoC, NOAA, NWS, NASA, DoD, etc.

18 Things we never thought of FXUS64 KOUN AFDOKC AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OKLAHOMA 1035 AM CDT MON JUN WILL UPDATE FORECAST TO REMOVE TEMPORAL WORDING FOR LOW POPS ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL OKLAHOMA. WILL ALSO INCREASE CLOUD COVER OVER ALL BUT NORTHWEST OKLAHOMA BASED ON CURRENT SATELLITE TRENDS. HIGH TEMPERATURES APPEAR TO BE IN THE BALLPARK AND WILL NOT CHANGE. HOWEVER...WILL INCREASE DEW POINT GRIDS BASED ON CURRENT METAR/MESONET TRENDS. WV IMAGERY SHOWING INCREASING MID LEVEL MOISTURE FROM SOUTHWEST...WHICH IS PARTLY TO BLAME FOR ACTIVITY POPPING UP EARLIER THIS MORNING. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT...PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT SENT EARLIER THIS MORNING CONCERNING FAIRLY DECENT HEATBURST EVENT OVER SOUTHWEST OKLAHOMA. EVENT MAY HAVE GONE UNNOTICED IF WE DIDN'T HAVE THE MESONET. FORECAST ID = 11

19 Research leads to decision support:

20 Research leads to decision support:

21 Fostering Partnerships in Agriculture The Mesonet has proven to be one of the most valuable production and marketing tools available to Oklahoma producers... Mesonet data will play an increasing role in pesticide and fertilizer applications, prescribed burning, confined animal operations, and irrigation scheduling, to name a few. Mark Hodges, Exec. Director Oklahoma Wheat Commission

22 Fostering Partnerships in Education: K-12 outreach program for teacher enhancement. Began in 1992 with 3 classes of teachers who received computers, training, and access to Mesonet data via a dialup bulletin board system. EARTHSTORM Customized software.

23 EARTHSTORM Teacher Workshops Initial funding from the NSF for $750,000 over 3 years ( ) 1994)

24 Generating widespread support In many rural Oklahoma communities, the EARTHSTORM computer was the only computer in the school (at the time). Soon thereafter, these same schools became the first ones in Oklahoma to access the internet. Multi-curricular, multi-disciplinary applications. 250 schools across Oklahoma s 77 counties now use Mesonet data in the classroom.

25 Partners lead to funding opportunities: Using the Mesonet, we now work in a laboratory without walls. Rural areas are at a disadvantage no longer. JoAnn Ball, Comanche Public Schools

26 Tell your legislators: The Mesonet is providing my students with new insights into what science really is. My students have a new enthusiasm and interest in their education. Never in my 14 years of teaching have I had students begging to come and stay at school for any other curriculum. Lori Painter, 6th Grade Teacher Monroe Elementary, Enid Public Schools

27 Multi-disciplinary Extension: EarthStorm U Funding provided by the Oklahoma EPSCoR Program 18 Oklahoma 2- and 4-year college and university faculty attended training workshops based on EARTHSTORM Professors incorporate real-time Mesonet, ARM, NEXRAD Radar, and Satellite data into undergraduate education and other science courses Education majors enter the K-12 classroom knowing how to use Mesonet, ARM and other weather information to enhance science and math teaching Result: Scientists in other disciplines now use the Mesonet

28 A Decision Maker s Nightmare: The practical inutility of the national weather bureau, for certain sections of the country, at least, was never so conspicuously shown as on Friday and Saturday last when South Texas was left without any warning Houston Post

29 A Decision Maker s Nightmare: The practical inutility of the national weather bureau, for certain sections of the country, at least, was never so conspicuously shown as on Friday and Saturday last when South Texas was left without any warning Houston Post September, 1900

30 More complaining: Informed decisions on the part of users of weather information are needed if such information is to be translated into beneficial actions. Research to improve the link between meteorological service and users of weather information was markedly deficient.

31 But in the 60 s, everyone was complaining: Informed decisions on the part of users of weather information are needed if such information is to be translated into beneficial actions. Research to improve the link between meteorological service and users of weather information was markedly deficient. -US Weather Bureau Report, 1964.

32 A meteorological fumble? No change in the situation first reported in National Academy of Sciences Report, 1970.

33 Individual heroes: Recommendation 9: The staff at NWSFO EWX is commended for their dedication and extra effort to seek confirmation that warning information was being received by officials who had a critical need for it. Nevertheless, it is recommended that NWSFO EWX work with emergency management officials to seek alternative and more efficient methods to confirm receipt of warnings. -NOAA Service Assessment on the Central Texas Tornado Outbreak May 27, p21.

34 We need better decision support tools: Recommendation 12: The NWS should continue to work with the state of Texas Division of Emergency Management to seek ways to improve the timely transmission of weather warnings and should intensify efforts on both a local and state level to explore alternative methods of communicating critical weather products to emergency management officials. -NOAA Service Assessment on the Central Texas Tornado Outbreak May 27, p22.

35 Individual heroes: Due to the perceived seriousness of the tornado threat Sunday evening, February 22, the Melbourne staff took the extraordinary step of calling the emergency management or communications centers in the threatened counties of the office s CWA prior to the onset of the storms. Station logs indicate contact with all of the affected counties, alerting them to the potential for severe storms. In Volusia County, the Melbourne staff contacted the sheriff s dispatcher at 10:33 p.m. and stayed on the phone, at her request, for several minutes giving scan by scan updates on the radar data. -NOAA Service Assessment on the Central Florida Tornado Outbreak February 22-23, June 1998 p7.

36 We STILL need better decision support tools: RECOMMENDATION: The potential limitations of this type of contact due to high activity levels, or minimal staffing, should be made clear to emergency management and safety forces personnel. WCMs should work to ensure that existing mass communication systems are identified and fully utilized and work with local emergency management personnel to develop new or enhanced mass communication systems. -NOAA Service Assessment on the Central Florida Tornado Outbreak February 22-23, June 1998 p16.

37 What have we learned? You've not had 30 years' experience, you've had one year's experience 30 times. -J. Carr (1850)

38 OK-F 1RST! OK-FIRST An initiative by OCS to develop a decision-support system for Public Safety Agencies (Emergency Management, Fire, and Police). -The Oklahoma Mesonet Plus: -NEXRAD (~20 products from 15 radars + mosaics) -National Weather Service text and graphic products -Fostered more effective interaction with the NWS Provide instruction on how to use and apply (and how not to apply) critical weather data : $550K one-time Federal grant 1999-present: $250K/yr from Legislature

39 May 3, 1999 Lincoln County Emergency Management: Ben Springfield Tanger Mall was cleared of people before the storm arrived. Rural citizens were informed by updates broadcast on scanner and took shelter. Patients at the Stroud Hospital were moved into hallways before debris completely filled the rooms.

40 Fostering Partnerships with the NWS: The Oklahoma Mesonet has quickly become a critical piece of information to make warning and forecast decisions at the National Weather Service. It has played key roles in situations ranging from the May 3rd tornadoes [of 1999] to forecast support during the Oklahoma City bombing recovery effort. David L. Andra, Jr., Science and Operations Officer National Weather Service Forecast Office - Norman, OK

41 Fostering Partnerships with the Media: From locating dry lines, checking rain totals for flooding, to wind gusts, the Oklahoma Mesonet gives operational meteorologists the timely data we need. Other than the NEXRAD radars, I can t imagine any other resource I have that provides as much weather data to help me warn our viewers of severe weather threats. Dan Threlkeld, KFOR-TV, Oklahoma City, OK

42 Human resources and response:

43 Multidisciplinary Focus: Fire Weather

44 Firefighting/Hazardous Materials Ardmore/Carter County Emergency Management routinely monitors the Mesonet. They page this information to all Carter County fire departments so they are prepared for wind shifts and hazardous conditions. Ponca City and Kay County Emergency Management officials continually monitored Mesonet conditions during the Conoco refinery fire on October 29, They kept abreast of the wind conditions to keep a bad situation from becoming worse.

45 Proactive versus Reactive We had a wildfire along the Red River south of Grandfield. Using the Mesonet and your fire weather products, I was able to relay to the first fire truck that was en route to the scene how fast the fire should burn and what the wind, air temperature, and humidity would be at the scene. Because the spread component was high, we dispatched 2 more trucks to the scene even before the first truck arrived. The 3 trucks had the fire out within 30 minutes, quite possibly saving property and lives. Tommy Thornton, Emergency Management Director

46 Urban Meteorology

47 Fostering Partnerships with electric co-ops: ops:

48 Economic benefits of one utility helping another: The Oklahoma Mesonet is proving to be a tremendous resource for the electric cooperatives of Oklahoma. Up-to-the-minute weather data are absolutely critical. Not only is the information from Mesonet accurate and timely, but other services, such as access to real-time weather radar, afford our electric co-ops the opportunity to enhance their abilities to deliver competitively priced electricity in a safe and reliable manner. Sid Sperry, Director of Marketing & Member Relations Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives

49 HEY! THAT S NOT FAIR! Conflicts with Private Industry?

50 Know your customers! Conflicts with Private Industry?

51 GIS Challenges?

52 GIS Challenges!

53 The Infinite Loop: Tenets from Cliff Jacobs presentation on Monday June 23, 2003: 1. Customization of some, passive access to other re: data (Ag, Edu, Emer Mgmt, Elec Coops, Transportation, etc.) 2. Personalization and communication (we are constantly training!) 3. Workplace/home/school (250 schools, 150 em s, 19 rec s) 4. Enhance the quality of work undertaken by non-atmospheric scientists.

54 AAAS External Review The Mesonet has grown over the past decade to an operation that reaches every county in Oklahoma, and impacts the economy of the state and the well-being of its citizens. The management of the Mesonet should be applauded for continually working closely with all end users. This useful exchange has resulted in products that are specifically catered to the users needs. This interaction has also resulted in a diverse clientele that is very satisfied with and highly supportive of the Mesonet.

55 A Climate Services Vision: First Steps Toward The Future National Research Council, 2001 The blue ribbon panel believed the Oklahoma Mesonet s success was built upon five pillars: 1. Users were involved from day one. 2. Products were developed in direct partnership with users. 3. Strong partnerships existed with mission agencies and with research elements. 4. Information was accessible. 5. Education of users and potential users was an important element of the program.

56 External Recognition Outstanding Contributors to Emergency Management by Oklahoma Emergency Management Association (1998, 1999) Innovations in American Government Award Winner in 2001 by Harvard University s JFK School of Government Special Award from the American Meteorological Society in 2001 Finalist in 2001 Stockholm Challenge

The Oklahoma Mesonet: Why We Did It & Lessons Learned (Its Value to the Citizens of Oklahoma)

The Oklahoma Mesonet: Why We Did It & Lessons Learned (Its Value to the Citizens of Oklahoma) Chris Fiebrich, Manager The Oklahoma Mesonet Oklahoma Climatological Survey University of Oklahoma The Purpose