UC12: Plume Prediction in Support of Emergency Response

Use Case Overview

Owner

Bruce Wright (Met Office)

Super Use Case

Use of Meteorology in Support of Emergency Response

Summary

This covers a range of incident types can result in the release of a potentially hazardous plume:
  • Large Fire (e.g. fire at a chemical plant or oil refinery);
  • Chemical Release (e.g. chemical spillage or a road traffic accident in which a hazardous substance has either escaped or ignited);
  • Biological Incidents (e.g. foot & mouth, blue tongue)
  • Nuclear Release (e.g. accident at nuclear poer plant);
  • Volcanic Eruption (i.e. prediction of ash plume);
Covering the evolution over a wide range of timescales in support of Emergency Services to allow safe approach, plan evacuations, etc.

INSPIRE Use Case document

Identication of spatial objects

Samples data

Two examples of the NAME output format are linked below, one a time series, the other a 2D grid. NAME output format is flexible, but these two examples are representative.

Further explanation of the sample files can be found in NAME III Output File Format pdf

Information Types & Queries

Warning: The following sections need revising to be consistent with the updated INSPIRE Use Case document.

Information Type Spatial Object Data Type Notes
High-Level Sub-Type Type Dim
Incident Location Grid coordinate Point 0D Float array (2) e.g. Latitude-Longitude or National Grid coordinates
Country map reference Fixed format alphanumeric e.g. GB Ordnance Survey: SX500534
Postcode Polygon - e.g. UK postcode: EX1 3PB
Place name String (controlled-vocabulary or free-text) e.g. Buncefield Oil Refinery
Plume Incident Details - Point Feature 0D Float array and Strings (controlled-vocabulary or free-text) Includes Incident Location, Current Weather and site & release categorisation (e.g. Urban, Rural, Coastal; continuous, instantaneous, Fire at site) and free-form text (e.g. chemicals involved)
Weather Current weather Point 0D Float array (& alphanumeric codes) Snapshot of the current weather
Weather sequence PointSeries 1D Time series showing the the evolution of the weather
Plume Forecast of Relevant Meteorological Parameters - Point 0D Float array & free-text Current Weather, details of plume behaviour and changes during the valid period
Hazard Sector - Point Feature 0D Single letter array (2 or 3) e.g. B, C, D
Plume at Risk Map Plume at Risk Map Grid 2D Float array (2d) Snapshot the plume extent, defined by one or more pollutant contentration thresholds
Polygon - Float array (1d)
Plume at Risk Map sequence GridSeries 3D Float array (3d) Animation or seqence of maps of plume extent, defined by one or more pollutant contentration thresholds
PolygonSeries - Float array (2d)
Plume Origin Prediction - Grid 2D Float array of probabilities Each cell identifies the likelihood of a plume originating with the area of the cell
High-resolution post-processed model analysis/forecast - Grid 2D Float array  
3D
GridSeries 3D
4D

Query Types

wip Work in progress
Point Extraction
Selection of data at a point for a single time or time series (Point, _PointSeries _; 0 or 1D) from a grid or time series of grids (_Grid or GridSeries; 2,3 or 4D)
Polygon Identification
Definition of a polygon or series of polygons based on threshold boundaries from a grid or time series of grids (Grid or GridSeries; 2,3 or 4D).

Incident Location

Incident locations can be expressed in a number of ways, depending on where the location is (e.g. UK or abroad, urban or rural), and reporting preferences; the main types are:
  • Place name (e.g. Buncefield Oil Refinery)
  • Postcode (e.g. UK postcode: EX1 3PB)
  • Country map grid reference (e.g. GB Ordnance Survey: SX500534)
  • Grid coordinates (e.g. Latitude-Longitude or National Grid coordinates)
These are all intended to convene point-based locations, but some actually define polygons in which the incident location is.

Current Weather

Point, _PointSeries _ (0 or 1D)
For a single time, providing a 'snapshot' of the current weather at a point or as a time series showing the the evolution of the weather at a point.

Plume Incident Details

Point Feature (0D)
Incident Location, Current Weather and site & release categorisation (e.g. Urban, Rural, Coastal; continuous, instantaneous, Fire at site) and free-form text (e.g. chemicals involved)

Hazard Sector*

Point Feature (0D
Two or three letters identifying Hazard Sectors at a point.

Plume Forecast of Relevant Meteorological Parameters

Point; 0D
Current Weather with free-text details of plume behaviour and changes during the valid period

High-resolution post-processed model analysis/forecast

Grid or GridSeries (2,3 or 4D)
2 or 3D spatial grids, possibly over a series of times.

Plume at Risk Map

Grid, GridSeries (2 or 3D) OR Polygon, PolygonSeries
Identifies the plume extent, defined by one or more pollutant contentration thresholds, either in the form of thresholded raster for a fixed time or time series or as a polygon or series of polygons, defining the boundaries of the pollutant contentration at one or more thresholds and one of more times.

Plume Origin Prediction

Grid (2D)
Each cell identifies the likelihood of a plume originating with the area of the cell; most cells will have a zero probability.

Plume Incident Details

Point Feature (0D)
Incident Location, Current Weather and site & release categorisation (e.g. Urban, Rural, Coastal; continuous, instantaneous, Fire at site) and free-form text (e.g. chemicals involved)


-- BruceWright - 25 Aug 2010
Topic revision: r8 - 25 Aug 2010, BruceWright
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