CONVOY (convection detection and nowcasting system)
Thunderstorms and high-reaching convective cells represent severe weather conditions that are crucial for aviation. Wind shear, turbulence and hail can lead to dangerous situations during takeoff, climb, en-route, approach and landing. Early warnings and prompt allocation of new routes are essential in these situations.
CONVOY records the entire life cycle of convective cells. It uses cell tracking to provide a qualitative analysis of convection, based on radar, lightning and satellite data on the one hand and data from numerical weather models on the other hand. This results in an objective overall map of the convection confidence , additionally meteorological properties of the individual thunderstorm cell are also derived. In this way, not only can the course of a convective cell be tracked, but the course of its most important meteorological properties can also be displayed.
Convective cells can thus be detected reliably and at an early stage, allowing a relevant assessment of their impact . CONVOY is a valuable tool for aeronautical meteorologists in the context of optimal air traffic management, which creates additional safety.
- Use of weather radar, flashes from lightning detection systems and satellite images
- Analyzes key parameters like convective tops, moving speed and direction
- Tracks each detected thunderstorm over time to recover the history
- Calculation of the approximate future displacement direction of convective cells
- Reliable detection of convective cells across all scales (even with embedded convection)
- Early detection of potentially dangerous cell developments and cell trajectories
- Objective decision-making basis for aeronautical meteorologists
