ERA-40
Encyclopedia
ERA-40 is a ECMWF re-analysis
of the global atmosphere and surface conditions for 45-years, over the period from September 1957 through August 2002 by ECMWF. Many sources of the meteorological observations were used, including radiosondes, balloon
s, aircraft
, buoy
es, satellite
s, scatterometer
s. This data was run through the ECMWF computer model
at a 40km resolution. As the ECMWF's computer model is one of the more highly-regarded in the field of forecasting, many scientists take its reanalysis to have similar merit. The data is stored in GRIB
format. The reanalysis was done in an effort to improve the accuracy of historical weather maps and aid in a more detailed analysis of various weather systems through a period that was severely lacking in computerized data. With the data from reanalyses such as this, many of the more modern computerized tools for analyzing storm systems can be utilized, at least in part, because of this access to a computerized simulation of the atmospheric state.
ECMWF re-analysis
The ECMWF re-analysis project is a meteorological reanalysis project.The first reanalysis product, ERA-15, generated re-analyses for approximately 15 years, from December 1978 to February 1994. The second product, ERA-40 begins in 1957 and covers 45 years to 2002...
of the global atmosphere and surface conditions for 45-years, over the period from September 1957 through August 2002 by ECMWF. Many sources of the meteorological observations were used, including radiosondes, balloon
Balloon
A balloon is an inflatable flexible bag filled with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, or air. Modern balloons can be made from materials such as rubber, latex, polychloroprene, or a nylon fabric, while some early balloons were made of dried animal bladders, such as the pig...
s, aircraft
Aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
, buoy
Buoy
A buoy is a floating device that can have many different purposes. It can be anchored or allowed to drift. The word, of Old French or Middle Dutch origin, is now most commonly in UK English, although some orthoepists have traditionally prescribed the pronunciation...
es, satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
s, scatterometer
Scatterometer
A radar scatterometer is designed to determine the normalized radar cross section of the surface. Scatterometers operate by transmitting a pulse of microwave energy towards the Earth's surface and measuring the reflected energy. A separate measurement of the noise-only power is made and...
s. This data was run through the ECMWF computer model
Numerical weather prediction
Numerical weather prediction uses mathematical models of the atmosphere and oceans to predict the weather based on current weather conditions. Though first attempted in the 1920s, it was not until the advent of computer simulation in the 1950s that numerical weather predictions produced realistic...
at a 40km resolution. As the ECMWF's computer model is one of the more highly-regarded in the field of forecasting, many scientists take its reanalysis to have similar merit. The data is stored in GRIB
GRIB
GRIB is a mathematically concise data format commonly used in meteorology to store historical and forecast weather data...
format. The reanalysis was done in an effort to improve the accuracy of historical weather maps and aid in a more detailed analysis of various weather systems through a period that was severely lacking in computerized data. With the data from reanalyses such as this, many of the more modern computerized tools for analyzing storm systems can be utilized, at least in part, because of this access to a computerized simulation of the atmospheric state.