Important User Notice

Some CRAS runs were discontinued on 18 December 2018. If you were a user, please contact us.

Model Analyses and Forecasts

These models fuse retrievals from satellite observations into weather forecasts:
CRAS45NA || CRAS40HI || CRAS15MW || CRAS48SP

Last updated: Thu Oct 12 16:35:18 UTC 2023

Northern Hemisphere
	00 UTC	06 UTC	12 UTC	18 UTC
CRAS 45NA	coarse medium fine 3-Hourly Charts 4-Panel Charts 2022-07-24	-	coarse medium fine 3-Hourly Charts 4-Panel Charts 2022-07-24	-
CRAS 45NA	CRAS45NA — 84-hour Forecast for North America Assimilates GOES Sounder water vapor and clouds
CRAS 40HI	coarse medium fine 3-Hourly Charts 4-Panel Charts 2023-10-12	-	coarse medium fine 3-Hourly Charts 4-Panel Charts 2023-10-12	-
CRAS 40HI	CRAS40HI — 72-hour Forecast for Hawaii-Pacific Ocean Assimilates GOES Sounder water vapor and clouds
CRAS 15MW	coarse medium fine 1-Hourly Charts 4-Panel Charts 1-Hr Wisconsin 2022-07-24	-	coarse medium fine 1-Hourly Charts 4-Panel Charts 1-Hr Wisconsin 2022-07-24	-
CRAS 15MW	CRAS15MW — 36-hour Forecast for Midwest-Central US Assimilates GOES Sounder water vapor and clouds
Southern Hemisphere
	00 UTC	06 UTC	12 UTC	18 UTC
CRAS 48SP	coarse medium fine 3-Hourly Charts 4-Panel Charts 2023-10-12	-	coarse medium fine 3-Hourly Charts 4-Panel Charts 2023-10-12	-
CRAS 48SP	CRAS48SP — 72-hour Forecast for Antarctica-South Pole Assimilates Aqua/Terra MODIS water vapor and clouds

CRAS AUTOMATED ADMINISTRATIVE MESSAGE
COOPERATIVE INSTITUTE FOR METEOROLOGICAL SATELLITE STUDIES MADISON WI
0435 PM UTC THU OCT 12 2023

GEMPAK IMAGE GENERATION FOR THE 20231012/12Z CRAS40HI IS NOW COMPLETE.

.END

Google Earth KML Output

CRAS/CRTMA GRIB2 Output

Directory for CRAS45NA GRIB2 Messages on AWIPS 212 Grid
Directory for CRAS40HI GRIB2 Messages on AWIPS 254 Grid Subset
Directory for CRTMA5GL GRIB2 Messages on Custom Great Lakes Grid

These computer forecasts are EXPERIMENTAL and are used by atmospheric scientists to assess the value of satellite observations in numerical weather prediction. Although the accuracy of these products is consistently good, forecast errors can occur due to non-receipt of data, observation errors, and computer problems. The forecasts are fully automated and are not always closely monitored by CIMSS scientists. The risk of using the CRAS to plan weather-sensitive activities falls on the user. Feedback will help us improve deficiencies in the CRAS. Please forward any comments to the CRASmaster using the contact form.

About these Forecasts

The purpose of the CRAS is to test the use of satellite observations in a numerical prediction model. The quality of a numerical forecast depends on having accurate observations of the environment to define the forecast model's initial state. Here is a list of the observations that are currently used in the CRAS 12-hour spin-up forecast:
    3-layer precipitable water (mm) from the GOES-13/15 sounders
    Cloud-top pressure (hPa) and effective cloud amount (%) from the GOES-13/15 sounders
    4-layer thickness (m) from the GOES-13/15 sounders
    Cloud-top pressure (hPa) from MODIS
    Gridded hourly precipitation amounts from NCEP
    Cloud-track and water vapor winds (m/s) from the GOES-13/15 imagers
    Cloud-top pressure (hPa) and effective cloud amount (%) from the GOES-13 imager
    Surface temperature (C), dew points (C) and winds (m/s)
    Sea surface temperature (C) and sea ice coverage (%) from NCEP rtg analysis

Support for the National Weather Service

NWS Area Forecast Discussions referencing CRAS
Archive of Forecast Synthetic IR Window Loops from Select Runs (Animated GIFs)

Numerical Weather Prediction Research at CIMSS

61 km CRAS Hurricane Track Prediction Project

60-hour Simulation of the Edmund Fitzgerald Storm

Numerical Weather Prediction Concepts

Land Surface Energy/Water Budget Studies

CIMSS Convective Development Nearcasting Model (CCDNM) — GOES-East
Nowcasting Analysis Project using the GOES sounder
CIMSS Convective Development Nearcasting Model (CCDNM) — GOES-West

Publications referring to CRAS

Please refer questions or comments to the CRASmaster using the contact form.