Forecast Improvements
WDTB Project 10 – Warning Decision-Making Research and Training: Advanced Warning Operations Course (AWOC)
Funding Type: CIMMS Task II
Objectives
Improve understanding of warning related issues, helping the NWS achieve
GPRA goals 1-7.
Accomplishments
CIMMS scientists were heavily integrated into the development, delivery,
and support of WDTB’s Advanced Warning Operations Course (AWOC).
AWOC is a blended learning course designed to provide training on advanced
warning decision making techniques to every NWS forecaster with warning
responsibility (meteorologists and hydrologists). AWOC was the first
initiative to deliver warning decisionmaking training to all forecasters
since the WSR-88D Operations Course of the 1990s, at a significantly
reduced cost. WDTB was awarded the Department of Commerce Silver medal
for the delivery of AWOC, and CIMMS scientists were critical to its success.
After the initial AWOC release (which included tracks on Core Operations
and Severe Weather), a third track (the AWOC Winter Weather track) was
released in June 2006.
In collaboration with WDTB instructors, CIMMS scientists updated existing (from FY06) AWOC Core and Severe Track material with new information and better fit it with other existing curriculum for new hires to the NWS. One of the new projects involved the safety of large outdoor venues such as MLFB, MLB, NASCAR, etc. This involves presenting these groups with the threats from severe convective storms and urging the formulation of plans for the safety of the venues and the fans attending the programs of each. It also involves gaining the support and sponsorship of the International Association of Assembly Managers (IAAM) in holding a national meeting in FY08 for the purpose of generation templates for the venue plans. This work included adding a new lesson to the course, preparing new or better graphics and animations, applying the results of past research to training content, and developing interactivity for the modules. Minor updates to AWOC Winter Weather modules made after the initial release also were made.
CIMMS contributions also included logistics support for all three tracks of AWOC and its management, including responses to questions from the field, assistance for local facilitators, provision of certificates of completions to students, and development of a semi-automated method of producing statistical progress reports of students and WFOs using NOAA's Learning Management System.
This project is ongoing.
Publications
WDTB AWOC official site: http://www.wdtb.noaa.gov/courses/awoc/
Lindley, T, and L. R. Lemon, 2007; Preliminary observations of weak three-body scatter spikes associated with low-end severe hail. Electronic J. Severe Storms Meteor., 2(3)
. Yu, X., L. Lemon, Y. Zheng, Y. Liao, Y. Yao and C. Fang 2007; Observational investigation of a tornadic HP supercell storm. Chinese J. Atmos. Sci., in press.
Winter Weather AWOC completion statistics for all NWS personnel since the delivery date in 2006 through 9 May 2007. The blue line tracts the numbers of those that have completed the entire Winter Track by the date listed on the bottom of the graph.