Overview USING THE INTERNET TO COMMUNICATE METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION Victor Stefanescu (NMA-NCMF) Goals Description Comparative analysis Comparative analysis Technology Resources Workflow Actual status Actual status User interface User interface

>< The goals of the project Simultaneous dissemination of meteorological products (forecasts, warnings etc.) to the public (mass-media customers) No waiting time between information updates and information dissemination No waiting time between information dissemination and information access

><Description The project consists of an integrated software system formed by a web application and its satellite desktop applications. The web application is accessible with any browser on any major operating system (Microsoft Windows, Linux). The satellite applications work in background, providing the web application with various data.

>< Comparative analysis In the past, the ways employed to communicate meteorological information were classical, all implying waiting queues for the clients: –facsimile –telephonic transmissions – Advantages for the new system: –simultaneous distribution of information to all the authorized customers –cutting the costs related to phone line transmissions –employing modern technologies to post various information on the Internet Criticable point of the new system: –accessing the information rests almost solely with the customer (there are no explicit announcements regarding updates)

><Technology The technology employed in the system is new: –the web application and its satellite applications can be maintained for about 15 years from now (minimal lifetime of the technology) Standards and programming models: –all dates respect the ISO international date notation (yyyy-MM-dd HH-mm-ss) –ASP.NET, XML, HTML; Unicode text files –main programming language: (Microsoft Visual) C# Avoided classical model: –the information is not stored and accessed by using database servers (supporting SQL), which are big resource consumers and prone to systemic malfunctions, but simple files with an efficient and minimalist format

><Resources The absolutely necessary resources in order to implement the new system: –1 or more dedicated programmer(s) and 1 or more decision- maker(s) –1 licence for the Microsoft Visual Studio.NET 2003/2005 Professional/Enterprise software package –1 computer which can act as a web server (Microsoft IIS, Linux machines)

><Workflow The general forecast product for each day is structured in files specifically dedicated to each day, archived for later viewing - avoiding the risk of overwriting and systemic errors in the storage medium The lists of clients and forecast intervals accessibile by each client can be modified by authorized operators easily, anytime, from any computer that can access the web application’s server Updating the information distributed to clients is a very fluent and easy procedure, possible from any computer that can access the web application The forecast and the current weather situation are displayed in tabular format and on the national territory’s map The nowcasting and general warning messages reach the media in real time There can be used the alternative service The web application’s errors are dealt with automatically by it (file and work recovery methods)

>< Actual status Project initiation: Completion of the functional basic structure of the web application: Implementation of the web application on an NMA web server: Working time: continuous / dependent on server’s working state (access through the HTTP protocol) Access time: continuous, by ~30 media clients Maintenance: daily or occasionally (non-essential procedures) Errors: minor, very rare; all dealt with the same day Expansion: ready to be implemented at each of the Regional Meteorological Centers of Romania - limited only by the imagination of our clients, that of the meteorologists / meteorological products creators and that of the programmer(s) / designer(s)

>< Results. Change of paradigm The meteorological information products are automatically structured for each customer and they reach simultaneously the media, immediately after creation (seconds). Thus, the need for human operators that would create each of our client’s products has diminished All the severe weather warnings are accessible immediately after their creation, thus the media being used as a secondary means of rapid announcement to the public This system cuts down the costs of information dissemination The communication style of the National Meteorological Administration has been improved The interest of our customers for our Internet-based products has been stimulated - an increase of ~20% in the number of customers from August 2006 to December 2006 The system can be expanded anytime, without impairing its functionality

>< BEFORE the implementation of the web application

>< AFTER the implementation of the web application

>< The authentication page

>< Forecasters’ control panel

>< Portion from a general forecast editing page

>< Building the graphical forecast for locations in Romania

>< Building the text/graphical forecast for Europe

>< Special messages (warnings, other announcements)

>< Building the nowcasting messages

>< Portion from the product page - textual forecast

>< Portion from the product page - tabular format

>< Google map around a chosen location

>< Microsoft Virtual Earth map around a chosen location

>< The graphical forecast for Romania

>< The graphical forecast for Romanian historical regions

>< The weather now - tabular format

>< The weather now - graphical format

>< The weather now - Heat index map

>< The weather now - Chill index map

>< The nowcasting messages page

>< Some other Internet destinations

>< Bonus: a RSS feed (news) reader