METOC Data Assimilation and Mod

The Battlespace Data Assimilation and Prediction Project (2342) enables the future warfighter to leverage observed environmental data gathered under Project 2341 (METOC Data Acquisition) by assimilating data into and fusing them with sophisticated high-resolution (spatial and temporal) assessment and prediction models made possible by high-performance computing. These models gain increasing importance as weapons and sensors grow in sophistication and complexity, making them even more sensitive to the effects of the natural environment. Meteorology and Oceanography (METOC) Processing enables full understanding of the limitations and constraints imposed by ocean and atmosphere, in space and time, thus quantifying and minimizing their impact on weapons, sensors, and mission. However, METOC Processing itself is limited by the temporal and spatial resolutions at which data are collected and numerically analyzed and predicted. Thus Projects 2341 and 2342 must remain aggressive in delivering higher and higher resolutions, demanding greater and greater computational and database capacities. METOC Processing efforts must also rise to the challenge of assimilating smaller-scale phenomena, particularly in the littorals, and predicting their spatial and temporal effects, as stated by Fleet and Force Commanders who require remote autonomous, clandestine, littoral battlespace sensing in near-shore areas to enable Sea Shield & Sea Basing. This next step in the Information Warfare (IW) Tasking, Collection, Processing, Exploitation and Dissemination (TCPED) continuum, METOC Processing, is critical to fully characterize the physical battlespace environment in real-time and in predictive/forecasting modes and gives the warfighter a decisive advantage in the complex blue-water, littoral and deep-strike battlespaces.