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National Weather Service
Jacksonville, Florida
Professional Development Plan for
Hydrometeorological Technicians
in the AWIPS - WFO transition era 1998-1999
August 1998
Training Goals for Hydrometeorological Technicians
In order to clarify what is expected of the Hydrometeorological Technicians (HMT), a list of training goals is
listed below. The list also contains priorities, location of the training materials and general content of each
of the course/modules. This list of goals is not meant to overload you, but is presented to illustrate what path
you should take in your training.
I. High Priority Goals: These
goals consist of those immediate tasks that you will be concerned with as an HMT. These skills, when combined with
the skills you have acquired as a Meteorological Technician will provide you with the basic skills necessary to
fulfill your function as a Hydrometeorological technician. This training is coordinated by the SOO, the DAPM and
the HMT trainer.
Goal: Demonstrate the highest
levels of professional training by extending the office capability in support of data acquisition and hydrologic
operations.
1. CPM Training: All HMTs will
be required to complete the NWSTC Remote Training Modules (RTM) on CPM duties. Currently there are six modules
in existence and these modules can be obtained from the DAPM, who also holds the testing materials for these modules.
Attendance at the NWSTC CPM formal course is strongly encouraged as course availability dictates.
2. Hydrologic operations training:
This training consists of CO-OP/CPM network training and is coordinated through the DAPM and Training HMT. In addition,
completion of the COMET module on Heavy Precipitation and Flash Flooding, has a good review module on hydrology
and quantitative precipitation forecasting principles. Completion of the long awaited correspondence course titled
Operations of the NWS Hydrologic Services Program will be required in the near future.
Goal: Demonstrate the highest
levels of professional training by developing the requisite computer skills for AWIPS and other modernized systems.
3. UNIX operating system and database training:
These goals have to do mainly with long-range goals and expectations for your computer skills with the systems
which will be used in the Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (AWIPS) and the update to the UCP (see
below). The operating system of the AWIPS will be HP UNIX 10.2 with the Common Desktop Environment (CDE) now installed
in the SAC computer and very similar to the Linux workstations (Hera and Neptune) also running CDE. In the next
two years the WSR-88D Open RPG will receive an upgrade to include an open system UNIX computer (SUN UltraSparc)
as its central processor, and the new NOAA Weather Radio Console Replacement System (CRS) will also be UNIX based.
Eventually, local data will be stored and archived from the databases in the AWIPS LDAD subsystem and the Informix
database of AWIPS. Specialized training in these areas will be coordinated with the DAPM, SOO, and MIC.
4. WSR-88D and UCP Training: As
part of the responsibility of the HMT position, certain UCP tasks have been designated. Those tasks listed on the
"WSR-88D Familiarization for Weather Service specialists", dated October 1993 are the primary skills
to be developed. A new UCP based on a PC running Windows 95 will soon replace the existing terminal. It is important
that you learn to manipulate the WSR-88D through this new UCP rapidly to gain a better understanding of how the
system operates. You should be able to make recommendations to the lead forecaster to switch to a different PRF
when range folding is occurring in an area that is operationally vulnerable to flooding due to antecedent hydrologic
conditions.
II. Lower Priority Goals:
1. WINDOWS Training: Skills also
need to be acquired in this graphical user interface (GUI) to be able to operate in the Pre-AWIPS environment.
A WINDOWS training program is available on the PDW and will help you acquire knowledge or sharpen your skills in
WINDOWS. Here again, once the knowledge is acquired, or even while you are acquiring it, it should be utilized
in the WINDOWS computing environment. Other courses in WINDOWS, that come to the attention of the SOO will be offered
if and when any become available and funds can be allocated. A demonstration of your skills in WINDOWS may be required
as a pre-UNIX check.
2. On the Job Training (OJT):
Continue OJT in the areas of NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) procedures including Selected Area Message Encoding (SAME)
procedures, Upper Air Observations (Rawinsonde/radiosonde/pibal), and ASOS/AWOS data collection procedures as they
evolve. This item is low priority only because all current personnel have reached a successful level of performance
in these areas. As new personnel arrive at the station and assume these duties as operational functions, it will
become the highest priority for those individuals.
3. Other training opportunities:
Although the SOO and DAPM will structure your training so that you will have the necessary information to acquire
the skills necessary to be an HMT, you should assess your own training needs and direct your energies toward satisfying
your needs both from the perspective of shift responsibilities and focal point duties. From time to time, the SOO
and DAPM will review your training needs with you to ensure that you are headed in the right direction. Development
of internal training aides to facilitate mission goals, and particularly improvements in operational procedures
to facilitate the office mission, are heavily weighted during the training evaluation, as are the initiative taken
to attend mission related external training opportunities.
Pat Welsh, SOO, NWSO JAX