The Experimental ADDS project was successfully completed on June 30th, 2015. All research has now been transferred to Operational ADDS. Please consult that site for all of your future aviation... more
The Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) Tool has been specially designed to meet the needs of low-altitude VFR emergency first responders. It runs as a desktop application on your... more
Recognizing that probabilistic weather forecasts are critical to meeting the air traffic efficiency goals of NextGen, RAL is working under FAA sponsorship to develop a probabilistic 1–10 hr C&... more
Our work in aviation weather dissemination continues through participation in the FAA ADDS (Aviation Digital Data Service) and NNEW (NextGen Network Enabled Weather) Programs. The ADDS... more
The primary role of the nowcast environment is to collect weather data, execute algorithms for producing a combined thunderstorm forecast, and provide a graphical display tool for viewing the... more
TITAN is a real-time algorithm for automated identification, tracking, and extrapolation based short-term forecasting of thunderstorms utilizing volume-scan weather radar data. For each time step... more
Fine-Scale Analysis and Nowcast System (FINECAST®) is used by the research community to study... more
VLAS represents the Doppler lidar variant of VDRAS. VLAS provides very high-resolution wind information at the neighborhood scale and has been used to study atmospheric transport and diffusion in... more
The National Convective Weather Forecast (NCWF) product was developed by NCAR/RAL and eventually operationalized by the NWS Aviation Weather Center (AWC). It was the first extrapolation-based... more
Named after the Native American Chief Niwot, this new short-term forecasting system is being developed based on a blending of observation extrapolation technology and numerical weather prediction... more
Advancements in science and technology, particularly computer and networking capacity, have allowed many civil aeronautics authorities to expand and modernize their aeronautical... more
The Current Icing Product (CIP) combines sensor and Numerical Weather Prediction model output to provide an hourly, three-dimensional diagnosis of the icing environment. The Forecast Icing Product... more
The Current Icing Product (CIP) combines sensor and Numerical Weather Prediction model output to provide an hourly, three-dimensional diagnosis of the icing environment. The Forecast Icing Product... more
DCIT EDR output at FL370 for 00 UTC 5/14/09; (Bottom) blowup image of the upper Midwest showing overlaid 1–hr in situ EDR tracks validating the DCIT diagnosis. (Note that there are temporal... more
Over the last several years the FAA has funded NCAR and others to develop a turbulence nowcast and forecast... more
The LLWAS system was originally developed by the FAA in the 1970s to detect large scale wind shifts (sea breeze fronts, gust fronts and cold and warm fronts). It was developed by the FAA in... more
The NASA Icing Remote Sensing System (NIRSS) deploys a vertically–pointing K–band radar, a lidar ceiliometer, and a profiling microwave radiometer to... more
The Research Applications Laboratory is addressing oceanic weather needs for aviation through the development of an intelligent system that generates 0-2 hour nowcasts.
Remote, oceanic... more
Wind shear experts in RAL provide consultancy services to public and private organizations and governments around the world to help them understand wind shear... more
An operational Windshear and Turbulence Warning System (WTWS) was developed for Hong Kong's NewAirport at Chek Lap Kok. The WTWS provides alerts... more
Thunderstorms and especially lightning pose a safety risk to people outdoors whether they are working or enjoying themselves with recreational activities. It is imperative to bring people inside... more
The accumulation of ice on aircraft prior to take off has long been recognized as one of the most significant safety hazards... more
The Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) is a national priority designed to meet the air transportation needs of the US in the 21st century—in particular, a significant growth in... more
Controlling snow and ice buildup on roadways during winter weather events presents several challenges for winter maintenance personnel. Among these challenges is the need to make effective winter... more
The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model is a next-generation mesoscale numerical weather prediction system designed to serve both atmospheric research and operational... more
The Dynamic Integrated foreCast (DICast®) system is tasked with ingesting meteorological data (observations, models, statistical data, climate data, etc.) and producing meteorological forecasts at... more
GRAFS (GRidded Atmospheric Forecast System) is a software system that is designed to... more
The Radar Icing Algorithm, or 'RadIA', utilizes the polarized moments from the National Weather Service's network of WSR-88D operational radars and the most recent Numerical Weather Prediction... more
An icing hazard receiving increased attention lately is that of the ingest of large amounts of ice crystals into jet engines, causing them to fail during flight. As of this time, no accidents have... more
The FAA's Aviation Weather Research Program (AWRP) directs research and development activities for 11 Research Teams. The roles of the InFlight Icing... more
Aviation-based winter weather research at RAL, sponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration, has focused on developing two new systems in support of Ground Deicing operations. The Liquid Water... more
When an aircraft experiences winter precipitation conditions on the ground, it is required to undergo a de/anti-icing procedure involving glycol-based fluids before takeoff. In order to determine... more
CubeView is a data viewer reference implementation utilizing data and standards from the 4-D Weather Data Cube. CubeView displays data provided to the 4-D Cube by the NOAA National Weather Service... more
The Flight Path Tool (FPT) is a comprehensive, interactive, geographical display that brings together all of the weather products available on ADDS. It runs as a desktop application on your... more
RTFDDA-LES extends real-world numerical weather prediction to large-eddy-simulation (LES) scales, with grid sizes down to ~30m. The NCAR WRF-based RTFDDA system is formulated for simultaneously... more
The National Convective Weather Forecast (NCWF) product, designed and implemented by the National Centerfor Atmospheric Research (NCAR), provides a diagnose of the current locations of convective... more
The Remote Oceanic Meteorology Information Operational (ROMIO) Demonstration is a project sponsored by the FAA’s Weather Technology in the Cockpit (WTIC) program. It is focused on... more
FastEddy limited area domain simulation with the cell perturbation method for resolved turbulence instigation (top) versus a periodic domain reference simulation (bottom). This feature allows... more
Because of their light weight, slower air speed and limited endurance, most small Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (UAS) are much more susceptible to variations in wind speed/direction and turbulence... more
Since it is a forecast product, the GTG is most useful for route planning, i.e., strategic avoidance of turbulence. However, given the rapidly evolving character of turbulence, for tactical... more
The Global Weather Notification system is a novel way to provide pilots with real-time, cutting-edge weather hazard information and to keep them... more
