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Advanced Warning Operations Course
Course Descriptions, Online Presentations, and Resources
Course Description
Overall Course Description: The Advanced Warning Operations Course (AWOC) initially consisted of two tracks – Core Track and Severe Weather Track. The course requires an on-site facilitator (SOO, DOH, or locally appointed training officer) to guide the sutdent through the course. The AWOC includes a combination of distance learning technologies including teletraining, web-based training, computer-based training on CD-ROM, Weather Event Simulator (WES) simulations, and printed material. The course is designed to allow every NWS Forecaster (Meteorologist and Hydrologist) to participate. Each instructional component as described below includes a separate evaluation component that is tracked by the AWOC on-site facilitator using the NOAA Learning Management System. Pre-test options are available for many of the instructional components.
For FY12, several changes were made to the AWOC Severe Track. These changes include:
- The Forecast Challenge is now required for all students to participate, including:
- Pre-requisite case study
- Forecast Debrief webinars (must attend at least 3)
- Post-requisite case study
- There are two new modules in IC Severe 2 on high impact hydrology events
- A lesson on Three-Body Scatter Spikes has been added to IC Severe 3
- There is no IC Severe 4
- Only one WES simulation is required to complete the course
No changes have been made to the FY12 version of the AWOC Core Track.
Note to NWS Staff:
To receive credit for completing this training, you must take the training modules through the NWS Learning Center! The links below are for reference only. |
Core Track
For a detailed description of each IC, click on the name of the IC. For access to training materials, click on the name of each lesson. These links will open in a new browser window.
| AWOC Orientation |
- Brief Description: AWOC Orientation is a live webinar for students and their facilitators on what AWOC is all about. We go over information about the course rationale, content, delivery mechanisms, schedule, recent course design changes, and Forecast Challenge rules. SOOs who will be facilitating students going through the course are required to attend.
- Delivery Methods: Teletraining and printed materials
- Approximate Completion Time: 60 minutes
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Orientation Documents:
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| IC Core 1: Optimizing Learning |
- Brief Description: In order for learning to be effective, both trainer and trainee have roles and responsibilities to bring to the task. Learning is not a one-way street from trainer to trainee, but a partnership which depends on the interaction of both. This module will present learning strategies which will be employed during the Advanced Warning Operations Course. This will include a discussion of learning styles, the need for evaluation, and the methodology for simulations which will be presented in the course. Lastly a brief discussion of the Learning Management System used in AWOC will be presented.
- Delivery Methods: Web module, printed materials, and support materials
Approximate Completion Time: 45 minutes |
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| IC Core 2: Situation Awareness and Decision Making in a Warning Environment |
- Brief Description: IC Core 2 will focus on various aspects of decision making in the context of the operational warning environment. The topics will include definitions and examples of the three levels of situation awareness (SA) and how they are integrated into the decision making process. Failures of the three levels of SA will be presented with examples, as well as elements that contribute to the SA failure. Finally, roadblocks to good SA ("SA demons"), and their impact on operations will be discussed.
- Delivery Methods: Web Module , printed materials, and web support materials
- Approximate Completion Time: 2 hours
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| IC Core 3: Expertise and Effective Office Warning Strategies |
- Brief Description: The content will focus on putting together strategies which will allow the decision maker to make the best use of their skills and those of the warning team. This will include a discussion on the value of expertise, the ways in which expertise can be developed, and what expertise looks like among NWS warning forecasters . One of the primary ways in which expertise can be developed is via post event evaluations. Ways in which these evaluations can be effectively and efficiently accomplished will be presented. Examples of the uses and applications of expert strategies during significant events will be presented.
- Delivery Methods: Web module (2.5 hours), Teletraining (1.5 hours), printed materials, and web support materials
- Approximate Completion Time: 4 hours
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| IC Core 4: Conveying Warnings and Public Response |
- Brief Description: This topic contains a variety of lessons that discuss how information flows between the general public and NWS WFOs, including how NWS WFOs can identify erroneous information they receive from the public, the place of weather warnings in a societal context, and the elements of an effective warning.
- Delivery Methods: Web module
- Approximate Completion Time: 2.5 hours
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Severe Track
For a detailed description of each IC, click on the name of the IC. For access to training materials, click on the name of each lesson. These links will open in a new browser window.
| Forecast Challenge Case Study Prerequisite |
- Brief Description: The Forecast Challenge Case Study pre-requisite will be used as part of the evaluation process for the AWOC Severe Track. Students will analyze model data for an event and then make a severe weather forecast.
- Delivery Methods: Web module
- Approximate Completion Time: 30 minutes
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| IC Severe 1: Conceptual Models for Origins and Evolutions of Convective Storms and Systems |
- Brief Description: This instructional component describes
conceptual models of convective storms. The emphasis is on physical
processes associated with these specific storm type hazards: supercell
tornadoes, squall line tornadoes, hail storms, multicell storms, and flash
flooding.
- Delivery Methods: Web module
- Approximate Completion Time: 2.5 hours
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| IC Severe 2: Threat Assessment |
- Brief Description: This component will identify the operational process in a NWS Forecast Office for continuous evaluation of hazardous severe weather threats (tornadoes, damaging winds, hail, and flash floods) to support effective warning methodologies. Emphasis will be on assessing mesoscale lifting mechanisms, and evaluating important kinematic and thermodynamic parameters for severe storm prediction.
- Delivery Method: Web module
- Approximate Completion Time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
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| IC Severe 3: Storm Interrogation |
- Brief Description: The participant will demonstrate selection of products and proper procedures for effective data analysis in completing storm interrogation strategies for tornadoes, hail, flash flooding, and severe straight line winds.
- Delivery Method: Web module
- Approximate Completion Time: 3 hours
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Section 1: Locating Updrafts
Section 2: Updraft Strength
Section 3: Tornadogenesis
Section 4: Non-Tornadic Wind Event Detection
Section 5: Quasi-Linear Convective Systems
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| Forecast Challenge Debriefs (Requirement: Attend 3) |
- Brief Description: AWOC Severe students are required to register and attend a weekly "Forecast Challenge Debrief" webinar presented by a WDTB instructor every week at 1600 UTC. These webinars will discuss recent severe weather episodes. As part of the debriefs, instructors will evaluate forecast challenge entries in terms of meteorological reasoning and analysis. Students enrolled in the Severe Track can ask questions as part of the Debrief webinar sessions.
- Delivery Methods: Teletraining
- Approximate Completion Time: 1 hour
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| AWOC Severe WES Simulations (Requirement: Complete 1) |
- Brief Description: Students will apply AWOC concepts in an operational context with two simulations that are run on site using the WES. Simulations are organized and proctored by the local training facilitator. Four cases, complete with simulation guides, are being released for the training facilitators to consider using in AWOC. Each simulation guide contains support materials that illustrate how simulations can be created to support AWOC performance objectives. Training facilitators can use these cases and materials for the simulations in AWOC, or they may develop their own simulations using other cases.
- Delivery Methods: Weather Event Simulator (WES) data with supporting simulation guides.
- Approximate Completion Time: 2.5 hours
- WES Simulation: QLCS Event Simulation Guide (For Trainer Only - 23.8 MB PDF)
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Documentation
Last Updated:
April 6, 2012
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