Mesoscale NWP over Antarctica: AMPS and support for ground-based astronomy

• Published in: Optical Turbulence
• Other Authors: Powers, Jordan (author)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2008
• Subjects: Antarctic; The Antarctic; Antarc*; Antarctica
• Online Access: http://nldr.library.ucar.edu/repository/collections/OSGC-000-000-000-350; https://doi.org/10.1142/9781848164864_0021

The Antarctic Mesoscale Prediction System (AMPS) effort is one by the United States to provide real-time, high-resolution numerical weather prediction (NWP) over Antarctica. AMPS is a mesoscale modeling system run at the U.S. National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) that generates twice-daily forecasts for the U.S. Antarctic Program. As AMPS and its products have been adapted over the years to provide NWP guidance over Antarctica, supporting ground-based astronomy may be a possible extension of the system. Presented are an introduction to AMPS, its capabilities, and its potential for support of weather forecasting for ground-based astronomy in Antarctica. Limitations are also discussed.