(pc) MNEMONIC NUMBER DESCRIPTION PREPRO 363001 INITIAL PREPBUFR PROCESSING STEP (PREPDATA PROGRAM, PRIOR TO PREVENTS OR VTPEVN SUBROUTINE) SYNDATA 363002 SYNTHETIC TROPICAL CYCLONE BOGUS PROCESSING STEP {SYNDATA PROGRAM, PRIOR TO PREVENTS SUBROUTINE - GLOBAL (AVN/FNL) AND ETA/EDAS NETWORKS ONLY} CLIMO 363003 CLIMO PROGRAM (CURRENTLY DOES NOT RUN IN ANY NETWORK) PREVENT 363004 PRE-EVENTS BACKGROUND/OBSERVATION ERROR PROCESSING STEP (PREVENTS SUBROUTINE IN PREPDATA OR SYNDATA PROGRAM; REVENTS PROGRAM IN CDAS NETWORK RUNS) CQCHT 363005 RAWINSONDE HEIGHT/TEMP COMPLEX QUALITY CONTROL STEP (CQCBUFR PROGRAM) RADCOR 363006 RAWINSONDE HEIGHT/TEMP RADIATION CORRECTION STEP (RADEVN SUBROUTINE IN CQCBUFR PROGRAM) PREPACQC 363007 AIREP/PIREP/AMDAR/ASDAR AIRCRAFT QUALITY CONTROL STEP (PREPACQC PROGRAM - DOES NOT RUN IN RUC NETWORK) VIRTMP 363008 VIRTUAL TEMPERATURE/SPECIFIC HUMIDITY PROCESSING STEP (VTPEVN SUBROUTINE IN PREPDATA, CQCBUFR OR PREVENTS POGRAM; DEPENDING UPON DATA TYPE - DOES NOT RUN IN RUC NETWORK) CQCPROF 363009 WIND PROFILER QUALITY CONTROL STEP (PROFCQC PROGRAM - DOES NOT RUN IN CDAS NETWORK) OIQC 363010 OI-QUALITY CONTROL STEP {OIQCBUFR PROGRAM - GLOBAL (AVN/FNL) AND CDAS NETWORKS ONLY} SSI 363011 SSI ANALYSIS STEP {SSIANL PROGRAM - GLOBAL (AVN/FNL) NETWORK ONLY} CQCVAD 363012 VAD WIND QUALITY CONTROL STEP (CQCVAD PROGRAM - DOES NOT RUN IN CDAS NETWORK) R3DVAR 363013 3DVAR ANALYSIS STEP (R3DVAR PROGRAM - ETA/EDAS NETWORK ONLY) ACARSQC 363014 ACARS AIRCRAFT QUALITY CONTROL STEP (ACARSQC PROGRAM) - NOT YET OPERATIONAL More detailed program definitions: B. PREPOBS_PREPDATA Purpose: To read in and consolidate observations dumped from individual BUFR DATA databases, perform rudimentary checks on the data, and organize upper-air data by decreasing pressure. For all networks except the CDAS, also adds forecast background (first guess) interpolated to each observation location , adds observational error (read in from a look-up table) to each observation, performs some rough quality control checks on surface pressure (vs. the background), and converts dry bulb temperature to virtual and dewpoint temperature to specific humidity for surface data. (This function is performed by the program PREPOBS_PREVENTS in the CDAS network.) Output is stored in a monolithic BUFR file called PREPBUFR. Input: Various BUFR data dump files including: ADPUPA (rawinsonde, pibal, dropwinsonde, reconnaissance), AIRCAR (ACARS aircraft), AIRCFT (AIREP, PIREP, and AMDAR/ASCAR aircraft), SATWND (satellite derived cloud winds from NESDIS, EUMETSAT, GMS, INSAT), PROFLR (wind profiler winds by height), VADWND (Vertical Azimuth Display winds by height at U.S. NEXRAD radar sites), ADPSFC (surface land synoptic and METAR), SFCSHP (surface marine ships, buoys, C-MAN platforms, and splash-level dropwinsonde), SPSSMI (reprocessed, and possibly SUPEROBed, SSM/I derived oceanic wind speed and total column precipitable water retrievals), GOESND (GOES 4-layer precipitable water retrievals, radiances, and cloud-top data from NESDIS), QKSWND [reprocessed, SUPEROBed quikSCAT scatterometer derived oceanic wind speed and direction (AVN and FNL networks only)], ATOVS [temperature soundings from NESDIS (CDAS network only)], and SFCBOG [Australian PAOBS mean sea-level pressure bogus (CDAS network only)]. Also reads in the global spectral first guess file valid at the current time (either the operational file or the one created by the previous program RELOCATE_MV_NVORTEX), the observational error table (text) file, the BUFR mnemonic table file (more about this later), and network-specific parm (data) cards which control processing through namelist variable switches. Output: A file known as PREPBUFR, containing observations with state variable information needed by the analyses, forecast background, and observation errors. At this point the only quality control on the data are the rudimentary limit checks applied by this program, the checks of surface pressure observations compared to the background (only for non-CDAS network runs), and those applied in the upstream observational dumping process: the interactive NCEP NCO Data Management and Quality Assessment Branch purge or keep flags on data types such as rawinsonde, aircraft, satellite wind, surface land, surface marine, wind profiler and Vertical Azimuth Display winds, and the automated quality markers generated by the NESDIS/National Oceanographic Data Center on marine ship and buoy data. C. SYNDAT_SYNDATA Purpose: To read in quality controlled tropical storm position records from the tcvitals file valid at the current time and use them, along with other observations in the PREPBUFR file, to generate synthetic (bogus) wind mandatory level profile reports (throughout the depth of the storm) in the vicinity of the storm(s) to better define tropical systems for the analysis. In the ETA and EDAS networks, a synthetic mass report at all tropical cyclone center locations is also generated with a surface pressure based on the global sigma first guess pressure (from the relocated global sigma guess) adjusted according to the storm category (from the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale), and with specific humidity values generated on mandatory levels throughout the depth of the storm from the relocated global first guess temperatures and an assumption of 99% relative humidity. The synthetic wind reports are then appended to the PREPBUFR file in all networks and assimilated by the analysis. The synthetic mass reports generated in the ETA and EDAS networks are currently being tested and are not yet assimilated by the 3DVAR analysis. The forecast background (first guess) interpolated to each observation location is also encoded in the PREPBUFR file in all networks and the observational error, read in from a look-up table, is also encoded in the PREPBUFR file in the AVN and FNL networks. Input: Quality-controlled tropical storm position and intensity field (tcvitals) file (in the ETA and EDAS networks this is the so-called operational file generated by the previous dump program SYNDAT_QCTROPCY, while in the AVN and FNL networks this is the file created by the previous program RELOCATE_MV_NVORTEX ) valid at the current time. Also, the PREPBUFR file output from the previous program PREPOBS_PREPDATA, network-specific parm (data) cards which control processing through namelist variable switches, the global spectral first guess file valid at the current time (either the operational file or the one created by the previous program RELOCATE_MV_NVORTEX), and the observational error table (text) file. Output: A PREPBUFR file with synthetic reports added (observations as well as the background first guess and observation errors). Note: This program does not run in the CDAS and RUC networks. It will only run if tropical storm data are available in the input tcvitals file (most likely not the case for the updated tcvitals file in the AVN and FNL networks). D. PREPOBS_PREVENTS Purpose: This runs only in the CDAS network to add the forecast background (first guess) interpolated to each observation location and the observational error (read in from a look-up table) associated with each observation to the PREPBUFR file. It also performs some rough quality control checks on surface pressure (vs. the background), and converts dry bulb temperature to virtual and dewpoint temperature to specific humidity for surface data. Input: The PREPBUFR file output from the previous program PREPOBS_PREPDATA (if the program SYNDAT_SYNDATA did not run) or from the previous program SYNDAT_SYNDATA (recall that SYNDAT_SYNDATA currently does not run in the CDAS network). Observations in all PREPBUFR message types are read. Also reads in the global spectral first guess file valid at the current time and the observational error table (text) file, as well as network-specific parm (data) cards which control processing through namelist variable switches. Output: A PREPBUFR file containing the forecast background and observation errors along with surface virtual temperature and specific humidity added. Note: In all networks other than CDAS, the "PREVENTS" function is performed within the PREPOBS_PREPDATA and SYNDAT_SYNDATA programs. E. PREPOBS_CQCBUFR Purpose: Performs complex quality control on rawinsonde height and temperature data to identify or correct erroneous observations that arise from location, transcription or communications errors. Attempts are made, when appropriate, to correct commonly occurring types of errors. Erroneous data that cannot be corrected are flagged and will not be considered by the analyses. The checks used are: hydrostatic, increment, horizontal statistical, vertical statistical, temporal (in the CDAS network only), baseline and lapse rate. These multiple checks are based upon differences from the six-hour Global Data Assimilation System (GDAS) forecast (the usual background first guess). This program also applies intersonde (radiation) corrections to the quality controlled rawinsonde height and temperature data. The degree of correction is a function of the rawinsonde instrument type, the sun angle and the vertical pressure level. Finally, this program converts rawinsonde and dropwinsonde dry bulb temperature to virtual and rawinsonde and dropwinsonde dewpoint temperature to specific humidity. Input: The PREPBUFR file output from the previous program PREPOBS_PREPDATA (if the program SYNDAT_SYNDATA did not run), or from the previous program SYNDAT_SYNDATA, or from the previous program PREPOBS_PREVENTS in the case of the CDAS network (in all cases, observations in PREPBUFR message type "ADPUPA" and their background guess are read). (In the case of the CDAS network, where temporal checking is performed, PREPBUFR files valid 24-hours previous, 12-hours previous, 12-hours subsequent, and 24-hours subsequent are also input.) Also reads in network-specific parm (data) cards which control processing through namelist variable switches Output: A PREPBUFR file with quality controlled rawinsonde data, intersonde corrections applied to rawinsonde temperature and height, and virtual temperature and specific humidity added to rawinsonde and dropwinsonde data. Text files are also output containing various informative results from the running of this program. These files are made available to the NCEP SDM. F. PREPOBS_PROFCQC Purpose: Performs complex quality control on wind profiler data in order to identify erroneous data and remove it from consideration by the analyses. The checks used are: increment, vertical statistical, temporal statistical, and combined vertical-temporal. These multiple checks are based upon differences from the six-hour Global Data Assimilation System (GDAS) forecast (the usual background first guess). Input: The PREPBUFR file output from the previous program PREPOBS_CQCBUFR (observations in PREPBUFR message type "PROFLR" and their background guess are read), and network-specific parm (data) cards which control processing through namelist variable switches. Output: A PREPBUFR file with quality controlled wind profiler data. G. PREPOBS_CQCVAD Purpose: Performs complex quality control on Vertical Azimuth Display (VAD) winds from WSR-88D radars in order to identify erroneous data and remove it from consideration by the analyses. The checks used are: increment, vertical statistical, temporal statistical, and combined vertical-temporal. These multiple checks are based upon differences from the six-hour Global Data Assimilation System (GDAS) forecast (the usual background first guess). In addition, there is an algorithm to account for contamination due to the seasonal migration of birds. Input: The PREPBUFR file output from the previous program PREPOBS_PROFCQC (observations in PREPBUFR message type "VADWND" and their background guess are read). Output: A PREPBUFR file with quality controlled VAD wind data. H. PREPOBS_PREPACQC Purpose: Performs quality control on conventional AIREP, PIREP and AMDAR (Aircraft Report, Pilot Report, Aircraft Meteorological Data Relay) aircraft wind and temperature data. The flight tracks are checked, with bad reports flagged and duplicate reports removed. In addition, AIREP and PIREP reports are quality controlled in two ways: isolated reports are compared to the first guess with outliers flagged, and groups of reports in close geographical proximity are inter-compared using both a vertical wind shear check and a temperature lapse check. Finally, there is also an option to superob collocated AIREP and PIREP reports, however this is no longer performed in any operational NCEP networks. Input: The PREPBUFR file output from the previous program PREPOBS_CQCVAD (observations in PREPBUFR message type "AIRCFT" and their background guess are read), the aircraft waypoints file, a land sea-mask if geographical filtering of the data is to be performed (which is isn't in production), and network-specific parm (data) cards which control processing through namelist variable switches. Output: A PREPBUFR file with quality controlled conventional (AIREP, PIREP, AMDAR/ASDAR) aircraft data, a text file listing isolated reports that failed the quality control tests and a text file listing collated reports with mean wind vectors that varied significantly from the first guess. The text files are made available to the NCEP SDM. I. PREPOBS_ACARSQC Purpose: Performs quality control on ACARS aircraft wind and temperature data. This program is currently under development and is not yet operational. J. PREPOBS_OIQCBUFR Purpose: Performs an optimum interpolation based quality control on the complete set of observations in the PREPBUFR file. As with the complex quality control procedures, this program operates in a parallel rather than a serial mode. That is, a number of independent checks (horizontal, vertical, geostrophic) are performed using all admitted observations. Each observation is subjected to the optimum interpolation formalism using all observations except itself in each check. A final quality decision (keep, toss, or reduced confidence weight) is made based on the results from all prior platform-specific quality checks (see B.-I. above) and from any manual quality marks attached to the data. The results from all the checks are kept in an annotated observational database. One other responsibility of this program is to perform a multivariate surface wind analysis and assign the analyzed direction to the SSM/I oceanic wind speed observation in order to produce a wind vector for these data. Input: The PREPBUFR file output by the previous program PREPOBS_PREPACQC (observations in all PREPBUFR message types and their background guess are read). Also, an observational error table (text file) tuned specifically for this program. Output: A PREPBUFR file with final OI-based quality control applied to all data. Text files are also output containing various informative results from the running of this program. These files are made available to the NCEP SDM. Note: This program runs only in the AVN, FNL, and CDAS networks. The ETA, EDAS and RUC networks run a different type of quality control on the observations within the analysis program itself.