Sep 23 2024
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New Self-guided Training Resources

By HURREVAC Support

We invite HURREVAC users to take advantage of two new ways to learn how to use the program or brush up on skills: YouTube videos and in-app training modules. Quick Guide to HURREVAC on YouTube New to the program and short on time? We’ve condensed all the basics into a five-part YouTube video series. To watch, use the embedded viewer below to start the playlist, visit our YouTube page, or pick a particular topic from the list below. In-app Training Modules When logged into HURREVAC, click Training in the toolbox in the lower left portion of the workspace. That opens a window with a list of the training topics. These are self-paced, step-by-step, interactive modules that gradually build up the concepts you’ll need to know to get the most out of the program. Though you can interact with HURREVAC on a touch device, we recommend using a laptop/desktop screen and mouse for the best experience because the training module covers up some parts of the interface. If you are new to the program or have never taken any training classes before, we recommend starting with Introduction to HURREVAC, Customizing the Workspace and Finding Key Storm Information before proceeding to the others. You’re welcome to complete the rest, or select a topic that is relevant to your needs. Other ways to learn HURREVAC For printable at-a-glance reference guides in PDF format, go to our User Guides and Tutorials page to find the Quick Reference Guide and Workspace Handout. For in-depth video training with longer demonstrations and expert descriptions of hurricane forecast products, watch the recordings of our annual webinar series. For the most detailed documentation, use our searchable in-app User Guide (login required).

Aug 23 2024
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Deterministic wind data available up to 5 days

By HURREVAC Support

Starting with the 2024 season, the National Hurricane Center extended tropical-storm-force wind radii forecasts out to days four and five. Previously, this forecast information only went out to day three.HURREVAC now incorporates this extended forecast data, which lets users gather more information about when tropical-storm-force winds could arrive. This change is reflected in several areas of the program: Forecast Wind Field (Wind Rings) used to advance no further than 69 hours, and can now be animated along the full length of the forecast. Wind Swath: Forecast – Deterministic and Forecast – Probabilistic were both extended from three days to five days. Wind Timing Report for a Location has a longer period of deterministic timing information for the 34-kt and 50-kt thresholds. Deterministic Wind Timing Report: refer to the updated report description for details. One change of note: a cell now lists “No Data” when the deterministic forecast does not reach that threshold. Previously, this was listed as “n/a.” NOTE: As in previous seasons, hurricane-force winds are still forecast to day two by the NHC, but extrapolated to day three in HURREVAC when applicable. Hurricane winds are not depicted beyond three days in HURREVAC. Therefore, even if the track forecast indicates a hurricane four or five days into the future, the hurricane-force wind fields and swaths are not plotted beyond three days, and reports do not show timing of hurricane winds beyond 69 hours. Users are encouraged to refer to Text Advisories and probabilistic products to fully assess a storm’s intensity, hazards, and uncertainty. This change does not affect the Error Cone plus Fringe Winds which still shows a hatched area for the next three days of the forecast.

Jun 21 2024
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June updates: Tropical Weather Outlook, active storms, and more

By HURREVAC Support

Default behavior when HURREVAC opens The Tropical Weather Outlook (TWO) map layer is now turned on by default when you log into HURREVAC. This change is intended to help users maintain situational awareness of emerging hazards, even when there are no active systems. Active storms are also loaded when you log into HURREVAC, but with one change for the 2024 season. Now, only Atlantic basin storms are checked on by default in the Active Storms folder of the storms tab. Storms in all other worldwide basins are still tracked and listed as options in the folder, but the user must select that storm to load its track on the map and then zoom to that location. In other words, when the program is opened it will not automatically plot and zoom to a storm unless it is in the Atlantic basin. Tropical Weather Outlook interface Several slight improvements to the TWO window were recently implemented. The timeline slider now shows dots to indicate the times when the TWO product was issued by the NHC or CPHC. You can click on the dot to show the previous versions of the product and observe trends in the forecast. This change also makes it easier to detect when there has been a special TWO issuance outside the routine cycle of 2 AM, 8 AM, 2 PM, and 8 PM (EDT). The map symbols that depict all active storms were also enlarged for better visibility. If a storm’s track is not already displayed via the active storms tab, you can click the symbol to load its track details. The TWO interface also has a simplified date selector. To view an archived TWO, expand the calendar window and press and hold the left/right arrows in the header to quickly shuttle to earlier/later months. Then, click a date within the month. The valid time of the TWO is designed to show the latest information by default, or closely match whatever storm advisory you have selected. If you load a hurricane track from August 2023, for example, the TWO will snap to show how it would have looked when that advisory was issued. But selecting a new time in the TWO interface will not alter the storm track you have loaded on the map. Other updates The multi-location wind probabilities report has been discontinued. The program contains probability and timing data in report formats that are more efficient to generate and access. Users can still right-click for point-specific wind probability analysis in 6-hour intervals. Note to users in Georgia: the state’s latest Hurricane Evacuation Study (HES) data has been implemented in the program during recent months. This includes new Evacuation Zones and HES documents in the Resources tab, and new clearance times in the Evacuation Timing window. If you missed our annual training webinar series during the week of June 10, or would like to review the information again, all session recordings and handouts are available on our User Guides and Tutorials page. We’d like to thank everyone who attended this year, and thank our partners at NOAA, FEMA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for presenting the latest information about hurricane forecasts and evacuations. A reminder to anyone with Desktop HURREVAC: this previous version of program was discontinued after the 2019 season and is no longer being upgraded, monitored, or supported. To see all of the latest NOAA products and functionality in HURREVAC, please be sure to register for a new account on the current web-based platform.

May 31 2024
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Updated Storm Surge Modeling for North Carolina

By HURREVAC Support

Emergency managers in North Carolina now have access to an updated SLOSH basin in HURREVAC. The associated high-resolution MEOWs are available in the Storm Surge (SLOSH) Explorer to help users understand their storm surge risk for both planning and operational decision-making. The North Carolina basin, identified as nc1, was updated by the National Hurricane Center Storm Surge Unit and released by the National Hurricane Program in May 2024. The nc1 update includes improvements to both resolution and geographic extent, and is intended for use between the South Carolina-North Carolina border and the North Carolina-Virginia border. This new data replaces the previous Wilmington (il3) and Cape Hatteras/Pamlico Sound (ht3) basins. Questions pertaining to nc1 data should be directed to Cody.Fritz@noaa.gov at the National Hurricane Center. General questions about storm surge tools in HURREVAC should be directed to support@hurrevac.com. Other recent updates The River Gages layers in the Conditions tab now link users to NOAA’s NWPS, which recently replaced the AHPS system. The interface and symbology in HURREVAC are unchanged. The Potential Track Area (Error Cone) rates for 2024 have been incorporated for all basins. As a reminder, when using an archived storm, HURREVAC now uses the error statistics from its year of occurrence to show the cone as it would have appeared at the time (more information is in the January announcement). HURREVAC always plots exercise storms and simulated storms with the current season’s error cone definitions, regardless of when it was created or the date of the scenario. The HURREVAC team is currently working on improvements to the display of active storms and the Tropical Weather Outlook, and will have more to share about that project and other planned changes for this season during our annual training webinar series (June 10-14).

Apr 29 2024
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April Updates: 24-hour time, SLOSH opacity, current winds

By HURREVAC Support

Here’s a summary of upgrades implemented in HURREVAC during April 2024. 24-hour clock option Do you want HURREVAC to display the time as “17:00” instead of “5 PM?” You now have the option to show a 24-hour time format. Open User Preferences, click the Map Settings tab and change the new Time Clock row to 24-hour. Unless changed, the default is still a 12-hour clock. This setting applies to most parts of the HURREVAC interface, including reports, track labels, legends, storm status bar, and wind timing flags. This setting does not alter any time references spelled out inside text advisories, which are always shown in HURREVAC as written by the NHC or CPHC. If you would like your HURREVAC workspace to show UTC represented in 24-hour format, make the following selections: Time Clock > 24-hour Time Zone > choose Custom UTC+0 hours from the list Custom Time Zone Abbreviation > type “Z” or “UTC” The 24-hour option is independent of the program’s custom time zone settings, so you could simply apply the 24-hour format to your local time zone. But changing to a 24-hour clock automatically includes the military time zone letter designation, like “23:00 EDT (Q).” If you do not want the letter listed with the time zone, manually set the appropriate UTC offset and adjust the Custom Time Zone Abbreviation to your preferred label. Wind layers added to the conditions tab By user request, HURREVAC’s Conditions tab now includes a depiction of current winds.  Two layers – wind speeds and wind gusts – can provide a broad estimate of where the strongest winds are affecting United States at the present time. These layers are updated hourly but do not contain any real-time observations from weather stations. Instead, they are a national mosaic composed of recent projections by NWS offices and specialized forecast centers (the National Digital Forecast Database, or NDFD). The maps primarily show data for the continental United States and extend into much of the Gulf of Mexico and western Atlantic. Winds are also shown for smaller regions surrounding Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. As with radar, satellite, flooding, and all the other conditions tab layers, the wind layers are only valid for the current time and are not archived. Therefore, it will not be in sync when showing archived storms or past advisories. Continue to use the NHC forecast products for details about tropical wind hazards. Control SLOSH layer opacity in quick layers Users can now precisely adjust the opacity of all map layers associated with the SLOSH Explorer, including MOMs, MEOWs, and Hindcasts. When SLOSH data is plotted on the map, open Quick Layers Options to control the display order and opacity sliders. This can make it easier to evaluate the colorful SLOSH data in relation to boundaries, evacuation zones, basemap imagery, and other underlying data. Updated training modules Three training modules were recently updated to reflect changes in the program. Introduction to HURREVAC Customizing the Workspace Decision Making Worksheet New users are encouraged to use the introductory training modules to get a step-by-step tour while logged into HURREVAC. The decision making worksheet can be a good way for experienced users to refresh knowledge of the program’s tools and concepts. Modules for additional topics are planned in the coming weeks and months.