Tom Stefanac
EF2
Cheers to Tim for an excellent article!
Although I will disagree with you (Tim) on one little thing... I think we are on the door step of data nirvana; we are just a little shy of walking through.
If you are wondering why the simple reason is that cellular internet coverage is not 100%, the fees are still not affordable for all chasers and in many places the connections are not faster than regular dialup.
Mobile satellite internet is not affordable, fixed location certainly is but it does not really work when mobile.
Baron has certainly been a landmark in the chase world given that you have coverage everywhere all the time, but the downfall is that XM is a one way link, all data comes down and none goes up. So as a user you can only select from a predefined number of products and the quality of this data in some cases is poor.
Wi-Fi is probably the best free thing to emerge for chasers in the 2000's. It is fast, reliable and readily available but there is one problem, you cannot use it when mobile right? You pass into and out of range of wi-fi spots so quickly mobile operation is at best only a dream currently.
I think true data Nirvana will be marked by two things, extremely cheap internet connections and full coverage no matter where one is. The internet is important since it is the gateway to all things, Baron is nice but you don't have the variety or choice associated with an internet connection.
Beyond data Nirvana is storm-scale (meso gamma) Nirvana where new radar/satellite technologies, mesoscale networks and numerical models will mark the transition into fine grid and highly detailed near real time data.
It is funny in a way, looking at the image by David Hoadley I remember seeing it in a 1996 storm track magazine and thinking, they had the right idea but the wrong concept, we will have wireless internet one day and it will be filled with data. Thinking back upon that idea now, my wishes for better radar in 96 never came near what we had today. I just wanted near real time radar like what the NWS first released in 1999. Back then I thought that was the latest and greatest thing given it was free. In 2001 I was really considering investing the money just so I could have the data feed and software from Marta Systems. Now that type of data is free and is pretty much real time. The future looks bright!
If we had a mirror into the future in the 70's no one would have believed it...
Amazing article time, puts me in a time-warp almost when I think back!
Although I will disagree with you (Tim) on one little thing... I think we are on the door step of data nirvana; we are just a little shy of walking through.
If you are wondering why the simple reason is that cellular internet coverage is not 100%, the fees are still not affordable for all chasers and in many places the connections are not faster than regular dialup.
Mobile satellite internet is not affordable, fixed location certainly is but it does not really work when mobile.
Baron has certainly been a landmark in the chase world given that you have coverage everywhere all the time, but the downfall is that XM is a one way link, all data comes down and none goes up. So as a user you can only select from a predefined number of products and the quality of this data in some cases is poor.
Wi-Fi is probably the best free thing to emerge for chasers in the 2000's. It is fast, reliable and readily available but there is one problem, you cannot use it when mobile right? You pass into and out of range of wi-fi spots so quickly mobile operation is at best only a dream currently.
I think true data Nirvana will be marked by two things, extremely cheap internet connections and full coverage no matter where one is. The internet is important since it is the gateway to all things, Baron is nice but you don't have the variety or choice associated with an internet connection.
Beyond data Nirvana is storm-scale (meso gamma) Nirvana where new radar/satellite technologies, mesoscale networks and numerical models will mark the transition into fine grid and highly detailed near real time data.
It is funny in a way, looking at the image by David Hoadley I remember seeing it in a 1996 storm track magazine and thinking, they had the right idea but the wrong concept, we will have wireless internet one day and it will be filled with data. Thinking back upon that idea now, my wishes for better radar in 96 never came near what we had today. I just wanted near real time radar like what the NWS first released in 1999. Back then I thought that was the latest and greatest thing given it was free. In 2001 I was really considering investing the money just so I could have the data feed and software from Marta Systems. Now that type of data is free and is pretty much real time. The future looks bright!
If we had a mirror into the future in the 70's no one would have believed it...
Amazing article time, puts me in a time-warp almost when I think back!
