Product Suite

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RAMSDIS Overview

• Product Suite
• Product Distribution Schedule
• System Maintenance
• Data Distribution/Internet
• Connections
• RAMSDIS Workstation
• Local Met. Service
• Networking
• Local Data Distribution
• Opportunities

• Hardware Configuration
• Commercial Software
• Requirements
• Operational User Interface
• Software Analysis Tools
• Data Inventory Strategy
• Training
• Installation of RAMSDIS
• Workstations

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Product Suite
These products will be ingested from the CIRA
server at NESDIS

• 2km Visible
• 4km IR4
• 8km Water Vapor

(More products may be added if internet bandwidth
allows.)
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Product Suite
The following products will be ingested from the
ground station in Costa Rica

• Satellite-Direct Products

Locally Produced Products

• 1km Visible
• 4 km Visible
• 4km IR2
• 4km IR4
• 8km IR4
• 8km Water Vapor

• Rainfall Auto-Estimator
• Volcanic Ash Detection Product
• Fire Detection Product (GOES/POES)

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Product Suite
Example of a 1km Visible Image Centered Over
Nicaragua
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Product Suite
Example of a 2km IR ch. 4 Image Centered Over
Honduras
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Product Suite
Example of a 4km IR ch. 4 Image Centered Over
Panama
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Product Suite
Example of a 8km IR ch. 4 Image Centered Over
Costa Rica
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Production and Distribution Schedule

• The RAMSDIS workstation will bring in a new
  image for
• each product from the server every 30 minutes
  if internet
• bandwidth is sufficient
• Low bandwidth work-arounds

• decrease the frequency of image ingest,
• decrease the number of products being ingested.

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System Maintenance

• Maintenance of hardware will be the
  responsibility of the
• individual Meteorological Services in each
  country
• Maintenance/upgrade of Microsoft, Interix, and
  Hummingbird
• software will be the responsibility of each
  Meteorological
• Service
• Maintenance/upgrade of McIDAS software will be
  the joint
• responsibility the individual Meteorological
  Services and
• CIRA

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Data Distribution/Internet Connections

• Distribution of data will be accomplished via
  the internet
• The RAMSDIS workstations will initially be
  connected to
• the internet using 56k modems
• Internet connections must be 24 hour continuous
  and the ISP
• must allow for a static IP address for each
  RAMSDIS
• workstation

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Data Distribution/Internet Connections

• Data volume over internet

• The size of a 480x640 image is approximately
  310k 2,480 kb
• The window for ingesting an image must be
  limited to avoid
• overloading the server, 15 minutes is a
  standard time
• The bandwidth needed to ingest one image is
  2.76kbs
• (2,480 / 900 sec 2.76kbs)
• The bandwidth needed to ingest 9 images is
  24.8kbs
• (9 x 2.76kbs 24.8kbs)
• Add in the bandwidth needed for server requests
  and other
• overhead and the final total is approximately
  30kbs

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RAMSDIS Workstations (Regional and Mesoscale
Meteorology Team Advanced Meteorological
Satellite Demonstration and Interpretation System)

• Desktop computers capable of displaying
  meteorological
• data for analysis by meteorologists and
  hydrologists
• Easily configurable to meet the needs of the
  user
• Inexpensive to maintain and upgrade

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Local Met Service Networking

• Most of the Meteorological Service offices
• have dial-in internet connections and will use
  
• modems on their RAMSDIS workstations
• Any Meteorological Service that has (or will
• have) a LAN (local area network) can connect
• their RAMSDIS workstation to the internet by
• using a network card in place of a modem

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Local Data Distribution Opportunities

• RAMSDIS workstations are capable of converting
  images in

MCIDAS area file format to GIF or JPEG format

• Each Meteorological Service could set up a
  server to make these

images available to various organizations such as

• disaster management organizations,

• forest management organizations,

• television news stations,

• privately owned agricultural businesses

• These organizations could, in the future,
  contribute to the

sustenance of the SDAS.
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Hardware Configuration of the RAMSIDS Workstations

• 500 MHz (or greater) Pentium III desktop
  computer
• 256 Mb of memory
• 4.3Gb (or greater) hard disk
• CD - Reader/Writer
• 17 inch color monitor
• 56k V.90 modem
• one UPS (uninteruptable power supply)
• 5-year extended warrantee

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Commercial Software Requirements
The following commercial software packages are
included with each RAMSDIS workstation

• Microsoft Windows-NT 4.0 (operating system)
• Interix Workstation Lite (UNIX application
  emulator)
• Hummingbird Exceed (X-window server)
• McIDAS (satellite data display and analysis
  software)

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Commercial Software Requirements

• McIDAS Software

• Data analysis and display software used by the
  RAMSDIS workstations
• Written at the Space Science and Engineering
  Center at the University of
• Wisconsin
• Through its membership in the McIDAS Users
  Group, CIRA is entitled
• to distribute the McIDAS software free of
  charge to all of its users
• The decision to upgrade the McIDAS software on
  the RAMSDIS
• workstations will be made by CIRA in order to
  prevent conflicts between
• McIDAS software and software written by CIRA

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RAMSDIS Software Analysis Tools

• Determine temperature on any point in the image
• Place a variety of color enhancements onto the
  image
• Roll the current color enhancement to bring
  out weather
• features
• Place maps onto the image using a variety of
  styles and colors
• Plot or contour meteorological observations
  onto images
• Create averaged images
• Create special products by combining two or
  more standard
• products
• Calculate the arrival time of a storm

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Data Inventory Strategy on the RAMSDIS
Workstations

• RAMSDIS workstations have 2 methods for saving
  data
• for future use

• Automatic 2-day archival of data
• CD reader/writer to permanently save data on a
  case-by-case basis

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RAMSDIS Installation
Phase I August, 2000 - Install RAMSDIS
workstations prior to completion of ground
station and ingest a limited set of products from
CIRAs server in Washington D.C.
Phase II When ground station is complete, begin
ingesting full set of products from Costa Rica
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On-Site Training

• One day training provided at the time of
  installation of the
• RAMSDIS workstations

• Topics that will be covered

• basic technical functionality
• basic McIDAS commands
• ingest architecture
• troubleshooting procedures

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Training
The following training sessions will be provided
by CIRA

• December 1999 - Preliminary two-week training
  session (completed)
• August 2000 - On site one-day technical
  training session
• October 2000 - 5-day training session at the
  RMTC in Costa Rica
• June 2001 - 5-day training session at the RMTC
  in Costa Rica