PDA Animated Weather (PAW)
The PDA Animated Weather (PAW) is a free, online service providing a global selection of real-time weather images and text. The content is specifically formatted for, but not limited to, display on hand-held, mobile devices. Products include Radar, Satellite and Synthetic imagery, National Weather Service text forecasts and Numerical Model fields, and on-screen controls provide users features such as pan, zoom, roam and animation.
Outcomes
PAW provides personal access to current weather events, including the ability to monitor severe weather outbreaks independent of location. Users in South Africa, for example, monitor the status of Hurricane and Wild Fire locations, and the Puerto Rico Fire Department uses data to view upcoming weather. Boaters on Lake Michigan view data in real-time, and Wisconsin DOT Winter Road Conditions (WRC) are available to motorists as they are in route. Furthermore, radar images alert private pilots of future precipitation. The PAW service has been online since summer 2006, and over that time the user community has expanded to support, on average, more than five million requests for information per month. That includes more than 42 thousand independent sources. PAW recently expanded its service to include a Google Gadget providing access to an additional user base.
Focus Areas
Project Leader
Russell Dengel
Information Technologist
- Department/Unit
- Space Science and Engineering Center
- School or College
- Graduate School