MATYAS, TANG – Fast Playback Framework for Analysis of Ground-Based Doppler Radar Observations Using MapReduce Technology
Jingyin Tang and Corene J. Matyas
Article first published online: 29 MAR 2016 Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology
DOI: 10.1175/JTECH-D-15-0118.1
ABSTRACT: The creation of a 3D mosaic is often the first step when using the high-spatial- and temporal-resolution data produced by ground-based radars. Efficient yet accurate methods are needed to mosaic data from dozens of radar to better understand the precipitation processes in synoptic-scale systems such as tropical cyclones. Research-grade radar mosaic methods of analyzing historical weather events should utilize data from both sides of a moving temporal window and process them in a flexible data architecture that is not available in most stand-alone software tools or real-time systems. Thus, these historical analyses require a different strategy for optimizing flexibility and scalability by removing time constraints from the design. This paper presents a MapReduce-based playback framework using Apache Spark’s computational engine to interpolate large volumes of radar reflectivity and velocity data onto 3D grids. Designed as being friendly to use on a high-performance computing cluster, these methods may also be executed on a low-end configured machine. A protocol is designed to enable interoperability with GIS and spatial analysis functions in this framework. Open-source software is utilized to enhance radar usability in the nonspecialist community. Case studies during a tropical cyclone landfall shows this framework’s capability of efficiently creating a large-scale high-resolution 3D radar mosaic with the integration of GIS functions for spatial analysis.
Read the full publication at Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology.
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