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Problems and solutions for drawing fronts objectively

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 June 2001

Donald W McCann
Affiliation:
Aviation Weather Center, 7220 NW 101st Terr., Kansas City, MO 64153, USA
James P Whistler
Affiliation:
Aviation Weather Center, 7220 NW 101st Terr., Kansas City, MO 64153, USA
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Abstract

A recent requirement charged to the Aviation Weather Center (AWC) is to produce significant weather charts for aviation users with, among other forecast products, forecast locations of significant fronts. To increase forecaster productivity, the AWC decided to evaluate the possibility that fronts should be first drawn objectively. Hewson (1998) describes the basic technique which uses a variation on the Renard & Clarke (1965) frontal locator function to find the fronts. The AWC had to overcome many problems in implementing Hewson's techniques. This paper illuminates the problems and describes the AWC solutions. As a result of the AWC's success, objective frontal analyses and forecasts are now a reality, and the productivity of forecasters increased.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 2001 Royal Meteorological Society

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