GFESuite Documentation

This section of the reference manual describes each of the baselined smart tools and procedures that are provided with the GFE.

Hazard and Watch Methodology
Hazard Procedures
ISC Tools
Tropical Cyclone Tools
Weather Element Integrity Tools

Hazard and Watch Methodology

Hazard Grid Methodology	This document describes the use of the GFE with the hazard procedures. It discusses the separation of hazards into temporary weather elements, making new hazards, and merging the hazards back into the Hazards grid.
SPC Watch Methodology	This document describes the use of the GFE with the SPC Watch techniques. It discusses the initial WCL coordination message, the receipt and plotting of the WOU, and the generation of the WCN using the GFE formatters.

Hazard Procedures

PlotSPCWatches	This procedure is used to modify your Hazards grid based on the incoming WOU coordination message from the Storm Prediction Center. The user can choose which watches to add or remove.
ViewWCL	This procedure allows an office to view the WCL product, and use it for watch coordination with SPC.
PlotTPCEvents	This procedure allows an office to plot tropical hazards as outlined in the TCV product issued by the Tropical Prediction Center.
SeparateHazards	This procedure allows an office to separate Hazard grids into their individual elements, which is useful for editing in complex situations.
MergeHazards	This procedure allow separated hazard grids to be merged back into the forecast Hazard grid.
MakeHazard	This procedure is allows the creation and editing of all hazards in GFE.
HazardRecovery	This procedure, only used in extreme situations, allows all hazards to be recovered from the internal VTEC active table. Used if Hazard grid becomes badly corrupted, and no official database exists.

ISC Tools

Show_ISC_Area
Show_ISC_Grid
Show_ISC_Info
Show_ISC_Highlights

This set of tools provide discrepancy checking for ISC grids. This set is the baseline version of Tim Barker's (SOO - BOI) set of ShowISC tools.

Tropical Cyclone Tools

TCMWindTool	This procedure decodes a TCM bulletin and makes GFE wind grids derived from it.
GenerateCyclone	This procedure is intended to be used for Tropical Depressions, but can be used to make any cyclonic wind field.

Weather Element Integrity Tools

CheckTandTd	Check MinT, MaxT, T and Td to ensure inter-element integrity. Checks T against MinT and maxT and checks Td against T.
ModelBlend	Combine model grids and forecast grids in simple averages, nudging toward a model solution, or in complex weighted averages or extrapolations.
CopyFromModel	Numeric tool that copies a grid from a specified model - only in the active edit area - and possibly time-shifting the model data.
Adjust	Performs basic math functions like add, subtract, multiply and divide on a grid. Allows options related to elevation and edit areas. You can combine these options in a variety of ways.
Enhanced_Wx	An enhancement to the original Wx_SmartTool. Both tools assign Wx based on the corresponding PoP grids, but Enhanced_Wx has some additional functionality.
LimitValues	Clips grid values at limits that you specify.
RemoveWx	Allows removal of "pieces" of weather from complex combinations of weather.
ERQCcheck	Allows the user to cross check elements against one another to assure consistency. Where inconsistencies are found, the forecaster has the option to either just see where the inconsistencies are, or have one element or the other forced so that they are consistent. It also includes a routine that check for the existence of grids required for NDFD.
Extrapolate	Allows to linearly extrapolate features in time.
Align_Grids	Aligns the time breaks of selected weather elements to match the time breaks of the individual grids of a "source" element.
Populate_SkyProcedure	Populates the GFE Sky_Cover grids based on an algorithm that finds the maximum model-layer relative humidity (RH), and then applies an exponential relationship to convert RH to sky cover at each grid point.
Collaborate_PoP_SnowAmt_QPF	Creates fixed 12-hour PoP (PoP12hr), 6-hour SnowAmt (SnowAmt6hr), and 6-hour QPF (QPF6hr) grids based on the values contained in the floating PoP, SnowAmt, and QPF grids. These new grids may then be used for the purposes of intersite coordination as well as web graphic generation.
NDFD_QPF_Checks	Performs checks to ensure the five NDFD QPF related parameter consistency requirements are met.
CarSnowAmt	Uses upper level temperatures, vertical motion, and relative humidity to calculate a snowratio.

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Smart Tools and Procedures