Global Weather Products

WeatherTAP has partnered with EarthCast Technologies (ECT) to offer our subscribers access to global forecast data. ECT is a U.S-based company that is revolutionizing how forecasts are developed by operating the first satellite-based global information system for continuously monitoring and predicting hazardous weather and environmental conditions. There are over 50 Earth-viewing satellites in orbit that continuously monitor the Earth system, generating thousands of channels of global data in real time. ECT uses this data to create prediction products that cover the entire planet. We currently have access to eight different ECT global forecast products. Each of the global forecast products cover a period of 48 hours with individual forecast images produced every hour. The model averages a resolution of approximately 20 km and the data is currently updated once per day. Below is a description of each of the global weather products. This is the first ever global display of radar reflectivity, and more importantly than that, it is a forecast of radar reflectivity for a period of 48 hours. This product is similar to a composite radar reflectivity product from a ground-based network of weather radars and displays the greatest reflectivity value in a vertical column, regardless of height. The Global Composite Radar forecast is presented in 60 levels of color depicting very light precipitation to very heavy rain or hail. This product displays the predicted cloud top elevations colorized to indicate height in kilometers (or kilofeet) providing a global view of cloud patterns and storm systems. The cloud top heights are forecast for a 48 hour period. This product displays the predicted clouds as they might be visualized in an infrared satellite image. Infrared satellite images are used for the detection of clouds both day and night night because the infrared images are produced by sensing the temperature of the clouds based on the amount of emitted radiation. Lower layers of clouds are generally warmer and lower in altitude, and are colored gray. Colder and generally higher cloud tops are brightly colored. This product is a visualization of the forecast air temperature at 2 meters above ground level. As a global forecast, the product covers the entire globe - both over the oceans as well as the land surface areas. Visual display of predicted wind speeds at 10 meters above the surface with contoured colors representing wind speeds from 10 knots to over 100 knots. Visual display of predicted wind speeds at the 850 mb pressure surface (typically close to 5,000 ft above sea level). Predicted wind speeds are contoured with colors representing wind speeds from 10 knots to over 100 knots. Visual display of predicted wind speeds at the 300 mb pressure surface (typically close to 30,000 ft above sea level). The jet streams are often visible at this level. Predicted wind speeds are contoured with colors representing wind speeds from 20 knots to over 190 knots. This product is a visual representation of the predicted wave heights in the open oceans. These forecasted wave heights are an average of the largest wind-driven and swell-driven wave heights.