Enabling Stakeholder Decision-Making With Earth Observation and Modeling Data Using Tethys Platform

Abstract

Tethys Platform is an open source framework for developing web-based applications for Earth Observation data. Our experience shows that Tethys significantly lowers the barrier for cloud-based app development, simplifies the process of accessing scalable distributed cloud computing resources and leverages additional software for data and computationally intensive modeling. The Tethys software development kit allows users to create web apps for visualizing, analyzing, and modeling Earth Observation data. Tethys platform provides a collaborative environment for scientists to develop and deploy several Earth Observation web applications across multiple Tethys portals. We work in partnership with leading regional organizations worldwide to help developing countries use information provided by earth-observing satellites and geospatial technologies for managing climate risks and land use. This paper highlights the several Tethys portals and web applications that were developed as part of this effort. Implementation of the Tethys framework has significantly improved the Application Readiness Level metric for several NASA projects and the potential impact of Tethys to replicate and scale other applied science programs.

The High-Impact Weather Assessment Toolkit

“…An image viewer, which was contributed and hosted by NASA's Short-term Prediction Research and Transition Center (SPoRT; Jedlovec 2013), provided quick looks and animations of all current and archived HIWAT forecast products. Also, select HIWAT products were packaged (i.e., separate from the full model output suite) into a netCDF format for an interactive (i.e., pan, zoom, query) web-based application, which was produced within the Tethys platform (Nelson et al 2019), to enable efficient interrogation of the forecasts within a web-mapping service. The Tethys-based HIWAT Model Viewer App (Fig.…”

“…The HIWAT demonstrations during 2018 and 2019 also included a hydrologic component in which the PMM-based forecast precipitation accumulations were used as input to the model of Routing Application for Parallel computation of Discharge (RAPID; David et al 2011) in order to produce streamflow forecasts for the HKH region (Nelson et al 2019). The HIWAT forecasts were used in this system primarily for forecasting flash floods due to intense rainfall in the smaller basins that are often not captured by the coarser-resolution global weather forecast models.…”

Enhancing Flood Early Warning System in the HKH Region

“…The forecast modeling tools have been calibrated and validated against several observed data sets collected from different locations around the world (Jackson 2018;Jackson et al 2019;Snow et al 2016;Swain et al 2016a, b;Souffront-Alcantara et al 2019;Nelson et al 2019). Results from earlier validation efforts were optimistic that the modeled predictions were consistent with outputs from other systems using the same set of meteorological forcings and land-surface model (LSM) fields.…”

Integrating Societal and Scientific Elements into Sustainable and Effective Water Resource Policy Development

“…To serve as a cybercollaboratory during the 2016 NWC-Young Innovators Program-Summer Institute (NWC-YIP-SI), an instance of Tethys Platform was deployed and fed by the UARDS. Tethys is a water resources web application framework developed by Brigham Young University (BYU) that delivers water resources data and information in formats that promote the collection and visualization of data and information that promotes actionable intelligence (i.e., knowledge) for decision makers (Nelson et al, 2019). In Texas, REON.cc now serves as a cybercollaboratory, leveraging the real-time data network afforded by the 70+ RTHS stations through a GIS enabled web platform, serving as a cloud platform for engaging stakeholders with an interest in the Data and Information provided therein.…”