METplus: A Conduit for Community Contribution to R2O Testing and Evaluation

With the evolution of weather and climate prediction using the Unified Forecast System (UFS), verification and evaluation activities are critical for the success of Research to Operations (R2O) across the UFS community. The enhanced Model Evaluation Tools (MET) framework (METplus) is at the core of an expanding cross-section of the community evaluation activities.

The METplus system consists of several components, including the MET, for the computation of verification statistics based on gridded forecasts and either a gridded analysis or point-based observations. The system also incorporates an analysis system for aggregating statistics and plotting graphical results. These tools are designed to be highly flexible to allow for quick adaption to meet additional evaluation and diagnostic needs. A suite of python wrappers have been implemented in METplus to facilitate a quick set-up and implementation of the system, and to enhance the pre-existing plotting capabilities.

This presentation will focus on the challenges and successes of community contributions to facility R2O of not only evaluation methods, but also model and product candidates moving through the stages and gates of the R2O process.