3.4 Meteorological Data Servers

Meteorological data to run the exercises in this tutorial are provided in the various example directories as indicated with each exercise. If you are running the tutorial through the supplied DVD, then there is an additional directory called current which may contain more current meteorological forecast or archive data as supplemental material. If you have access to the internet, then current meteorological data in a HYSPLIT compatible format, may be downloaded from several different sources:

• ARL server forecast data


• NCEP server forecast data


• ARL server archive data

The above direct links may not be needed if the data can be downloaded using the GUI through the FTP menu tab. At some organizations, IT security practices may restrict FTP access only to approved FTP clients.

The ARL data can also be accessed indirectly through the READY system which provides links to the meteorological data as well as on-line HYSPLIT simulations. A description of the system can be found in the Journal of Environmental Software.