Accurate Quantitative Precipitation Estimation Research Articles

Error Structure Analysis for Multiple Dual-polarization Radar using Ensemble Learning

Accurate quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) was essential for the prediction and prevention of natural disasters. Recently, radar has been attracting attention as a technique for performing QPE with high spatiotemporal resolution. In particular, the QPE was improved by introducing a dual-polarization technique that observed several hydrometeorological variables at various scales compared to the single polarization radar that utilized only the existing reflectivity-precipitation relationship. This study aimed to analyze the error structure of dual-polarization radar by predicting gauged rainfall using ensemble models. The location of the radar was Gwanaksan, Garisan, and Gwangdeoksan which belonged to the Bukhan river basin. The Pearson correlation coefficients between reflectance-precipitation and gauged rainfall were examined initially. After that, each gauged rainfall was predicted using ensemble learning, which included random forest (RF), gradient boost, and XGboost. Mean absolute error, root mean squared error, and R squared were evaluated as the predictive performance. Hyper-parameters were optimized by 5-fold cross-validation, and the reliability of the research results was obtained by 10 iterations. The result showed that RF had better predictive performance than other models. Gauged stations that operated at high altitudes were not good enough for the QPE because of the mountain effect. Due to the mountain range effect, the importance of the Gwanaksan radar at an altitude of 3 km was very high.

A deep learning-based framework for multi-source precipitation fusion

Accurate quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) is essential for various applications, including land surface modeling, flood forecasting, drought monitoring and prediction. In situ precipitation datasets, remote sensing-based estimations, and reanalysis products have heterogeneous uncertainty. Numerous models have been developed to merge precipitation estimations from different sources to improve the accuracy of QPE. However, many of these attempts are mainly focused on spatial or temporal correlations between various remote sensing sources and/or gauge data separately, and thus, the developed model cannot fully capture the inherent spatiotemporal dependencies that could potentially improve the precipitation estimations. In this study, we developed a general framework that can simultaneously merge and downscale multiple user-defined precipitation products by using rain gauge observations as target values. A novel deep learning-based convolutional neural network architecture, namely, the precipitation data fusion network (PDFN), that combines multiple layers of 3D-CNN and ConvLSTM was developed to fully exploit the spatial and temporal patterns of precipitation. This architecture benefits from techniques such as batch normalization, data augmentation schemes, and dropout layers to avoid overfitting and address skewed class proportions due to the highly imbalanced nature of the precipitation datasets. The results showed that the fused daily product remarkably improved the mean square error (MSE) and Pearson correlation coefficient (PCC) by 35% and 16%, respectively, compared to the best-performing product.

A new approach for quantitative precipitation estimation from radar reflectivity using a gated recurrent unit network

Accurate quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) utilizing radar data plays a vital role in weather monitoring, hydrological modelling and prediction. In previous research, some regression techniques such as the reflectivity (Z) - rainfall (R) relationship and artificial intelligence methods were employed for radar QPE; however, the estimation results remain limited the spatial and temporal variability of rainfall results in large errors in radar QPE. Recently, an emerging deep learning approach that can be applied in hydrological areas for QPE, namely, the gated recurrent unit (GRU) network method, has been used. GRU networks have evolved from long short-term memory (LSTM) networks, with improved training speed and modelling accuracy. In this research, the GRU network is applied to QPE using the three-dimensional structure of reflectivity from the Constant Altitude Plan Position Indicator (3D CAPPI) for an urban catchment in Seoul, South Korea. Simultaneously, a “complete” 3D CAPPI based on a cubic grid of 4 × 4 km2 that is highly suitable for the study area is proposed. Based on the comparison of the results of the GRU model with those of the artificial neural networks (ANNs), recurrent neural networks (RNNs), and LSTM networks, and the Z-R relationship, namely the least-squares model (LSM) for 2 testing strategies including traditional test strategy and leave-one-out cross-validation (LOOCV) strategy, the results indicate that the GRU model is superior to other models in radar QPE, with improvements by 3.3 ∼ 46.2%, 25 ∼ 70% and 1.2 ∼ 44.8% in the root mean square error (RMSE), bias and correlation coefficient (CC). This study presents a valuable method for improving the accuracy of radar QPE that can be actively employed in the future.

Comparison of Satellite Precipitation Products: IMERG and GSMaP with Rain Gauge Observations in Northern China

Extreme precipitation events have increasingly happened at global and regional scales as the global climate has changed in recent decades. Accurate quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) plays an important role in the warning of extreme precipitation events. With hourly rain gauge observations as a reference, this study compares the performance of Integrated Multi-satellitE Retrievals for Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission (IMERG) and Global Satellite Mapping of Precipitation (GSMaP) quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) products over Northern China in 2021. The Probability of Detection (POD), Relative Bias (RB), Root-Mean-Squared Error (RMSE), and Fractional Standard Error (FSE) are among the assessment metrics, as are the Probability of Detection (POD), False Alarm Ratio (FAR), and Critical Success Index (CSI). We examined the spatial distribution of cumulative precipitation and the temporal distribution of hourly average precipitation for three severe precipitation occurrences using these assessment metrics. The IMERG products capture strong precipitation centers that are compatible with the gauge observations, especially in extreme precipitation events in areas with relatively flat terrain and low-altitude (≤1000 m). Both IMERG (National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA) and GSMaP (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA) satellite-based QPE products have precipitation peaks in advance (2–4 h) and generally underestimate (overestimate) precipitation when the actual precipitation is heavy (light). The satellite-based QPE products generally overestimate the heavy rainfall caused by non-typhoons and underestimate the heavy rainfall caused by typhoons. The GSMaP products may have the capacity to detect short-term rainstorm events. The accuracy of satellite-based QPE products may be influenced by precipitation intensity, sensors, terrain, and other variables. Therefore, in accordance with our recommendations, more ground rainfall stations should be used to collect actual precipitation data in regions with high levels of spatial heterogeneity and complex topography. The data programmers should strengthen the weights computation retrieval technique and fully utilize infrared (IR)-based data. Furthermore, this study is expected to give helpful feedback to the algorithm developers of IMERG and GSMaP products, as well as those researchers into the use of IMERG and GSMaP satellite-based QPE products in applications.

The Quantile-Matching Approach to Improving Radar Quantitative Precipitation Estimation in South China

Weather radar provides regional rainfall information with a very high spatial and temporal resolution. Because the radar data suffer from errors from various sources, an accurate quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) from a weather radar system is crucial for meteorological forecasts and hydrological applications. In the South China region, multiple weather radar networks are widely used, but the accuracy of radar QPE products remains to be analyzed and improved. Based on hourly radar QPE and rain gauge observation data, this study first analyzed the QPE error in South China and then applied the Quantile Matching (Q-matching) method to improve the radar QPE accuracy. The results show that the rainfall intensity of the radar QPE is generally larger than that determined from rain gauge observations but that it usually underestimates the intensity of the observed heavy rainfall. After the Q-matching method was applied to correct the QPE, the accuracy improved by a significant amount and was in good agreement with the rain gauge observations. Specifically, the Q-matching method was able to reduce the QPE error from 39–44%, demonstrating performance that is much better than that of the traditional climatological scaling method, which was shown to be able to reduce the QPE error from 3–15% in South China. Moreover, after the Q-matching correction, the QPE values were closer to the rainfall values that were observed from the automatic weather stations in terms of having a smaller mean absolute error and a higher correlation coefficient. Therefore, the Q-matching method can improve the QPE accuracy as well as estimate the surface precipitation better. This method provides a promising prospect for radar QPE in the study region.

Updates on the Radar Data Quality Control in the MRMS Quantitative Precipitation Estimation System

AbstractThe Multi-Radar-Multi-Sensor (MRMS) system was transitioned into operations at the National Centers for Environmental Prediction in the fall of 2014. It provides high-quality and high-resolution severe weather and precipitation products for meteorology, hydrology, and aviation applications. Among processing modules, the radar data quality control (QC) plays a critical role in effectively identifying and removing various nonhydrometeor radar echoes for accurate quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE). Since its initial implementation in 2014, the radar QC has undergone continuous refinements and enhancements to ensure its robust performance across seasons and all regions in the continental United States and southern Canada. These updates include 1) improved melting-layer delineation, 2) clearance of wind farm contamination, 3) mitigation of corrupt data impacts due to hardware issues, 4) mitigation of sun spikes, and 5) mitigation of residual ground/lake/sea clutter due to sidelobe effects and anomalous propagation. This paper provides an overview of the MRMS radar data QC enhancements since 2014.

Quantification of Precipitation Using Polarimetric Radar Measurements during Several Typhoon Events in Southern China

Accurate quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) during typhoon events is critical for flood warning and emergency management. Dual-polarization radar has proven to have better performance for QPE, compared to traditional single-polarization radar. However, polarimetric radar applications have not been extensively investigated in China, especially during extreme events such as typhoons, since the operational dual-polarization system upgrade only happened recently. This paper extends a polarimetric radar rainfall system for local applications during typhoons in southern China and conducts comprehensive studies about QPE and precipitation microphysics. Observations from S-band dual-polarization radar in Guangdong Province during three typhoon events in 2017 are examined to demonstrate the enhanced radar rainfall performance. The microphysical properties of hydrometeors during typhoon events are analyzed through raindrop size distribution (DSD) data and polarimetric radar measurements. The stratiform precipitation in typhoons presents lower mean raindrop diameter and lower raindrop concentration than that of the convection precipitation. The rainfall estimates from the adapted radar rainfall algorithm agree well with rainfall measurements from rain gauges. Using the rain gauge data as references, the maximum normalized mean bias ( N M B ) of the adapted radar rainfall algorithm is 20.27%; the normalized standard error ( N S E ) is less than 40%; and the Pearson’s correlation coefficient ( C C ) is higher than 0.92. For the three typhoon events combined, the N S E and N M B are 36.66% and -15.78%, respectively. Compared with several conventional radar rainfall algorithms, the adapted algorithm based on local rainfall microphysics has the best performance in southern China.

Graph Convolutional Regression Networks for Quantitative Precipitation Estimation

Accurate and high-resolution quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) plays a crucial role in meteorology and hydrology. However, for acquiring a more accurate QPE, how to depict the complex nonlinear relationship between the radar reflectivity and the true rain rates, as well as adaptively explore the spatial dependencies of precipitation, remains extremely challenging. In this letter, we propose to incorporate the merits of graph convolutional regression networks (GCRNs) and address the aforementioned issues simultaneously in the GCRNs framework. Furthermore, in order to tolerate the variabilities of spatial correlation in the practical precipitation, we expand GCRNs with a multiconvolutional mechanism between the center node and its neighbor rain gauges. Thus, the ability to capture more complicated spatial characteristics of precipitation can be enhanced, and the phenomenon of overwhelming by the neighbor nodes can be released. Extensive experiments were implemented on 12 rainfall processes in Hangzhou, China, 2015. The experimental results confirm that our proposal consistently outperforms the state-of-the-art QPE models.

Rainfall Characteristics in the Mantaro Basin over Tropical Andes from a Vertically Pointed Profile Rain Radar and In-Situ Field Campaign

Information on the vertical structure of rain, especially near the surface is important for accurate quantitative precipitation estimation from weather and space-borne radars. In the present study, the rainfall characteristics, from a vertically pointed profile Radar in the Mantaro basin (Huancayo, Peru) are observed. In summary, diurnal variation of near-surface rainfall and bright band height, average vertical profiles of the drop size distribution (DSD), rain rate, radar reflectivity (Ze) and liquid water content (LWC) are investigated to derive the rainfall characteristics. Diurnal variation of rain rate and bright band height show the bimodal distribution, where frequent and higher rain rate occurred during the afternoon and nighttime, and more than 70% bright band height found between 4.3–4.7 km. The average vertical profiles of Ze show the opposite characteristics above and below the melting level (ML) and depend on the near-surface rain rate. For example, the average Ze profiles have a negative gradient above the ML, whereas below, the ML, the gradient depends on the near-surface rain rate. The rain rate and LWC show the opposite behavior, and both consist of a positive (negative) gradient below (above) the ML. The vertical growth of DSD parameters depend on the near-surface rain rate, and a higher concentration of large-sized of droplets are observed for higher near surface rain rate, however, the dominant modes of droplets are <1 mm throughout the vertical column. However, the most significant variation in DSD growth is observed for near-surface rain rate ≥20 mm/h. These findings suggest using different retrieval techniques for near surface rain estimation than the rest of the vertical profile and high rain rate events. The improved understanding of the tropical Andes precipitation would be very important for assessing climate variability and to forecast the precipitation using the numerical models.

Effective Cloud Detection and Segmentation Using a Gradient-Based Algorithm for Satellite Imagery: Application to Improve PERSIANN-CCS

Abstract The effective identification of clouds and monitoring of their evolution are important toward more accurate quantitative precipitation estimation and forecast. In this study, a new gradient-based cloud-image segmentation algorithm is developed using image processing techniques. This method integrates morphological image gradient magnitudes to separate cloud systems and patches boundaries. A varying scale kernel is implemented to reduce the sensitivity of image segmentation to noise and to capture objects with various finenesses of the edges in remote sensing images. The proposed method is flexible and extendable from single to multispectral imagery. Case studies were carried out to validate the algorithm by applying the proposed segmentation algorithm to synthetic radiances for channels of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-16) simulated by a high-resolution weather prediction model. The proposed method compares favorably with the existing cloud-patch-based segmentation technique implemented in the Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information Using Artificial Neural Networks–Cloud Classification System (PERSIANN-CCS) rainfall retrieval algorithm. Evaluation of event-based images indicates that the proposed algorithm has potentials comparing to the conventional segmentation technique used in PERSIANN-CCS to improve rain detection and estimation skills with an accuracy rate of up to 98% in identifying cloud regions.

A Multiscale Evaluation of Multisensor Quantitative Precipitation Estimates in the Russian River Basin

Abstract The Russian River in northern California is an important hydrological resource that typically depends on a few significant precipitation events per year, often associated with atmospheric rivers (ARs), to maintain its annual water supply. Because of the highly variable nature of annual precipitation in the region, accurate quantitative precipitation estimates (QPEs) are necessary to drive hydrologic models and inform water management decisions. The basin’s location and complex terrain present a unique challenge to QPEs, with sparse in situ observations and mountains that inhibit remote sensing by ground radars. Gridded multisensor QPE datasets can fill in the gaps but are susceptible to both the errors and uncertainties from the ingested datasets and uncertainties due to interpolation methods. In this study a dense network of independently operated rain gauges is used to evaluate gridded QPE from the Multi-Radar Multi-Sensor (MRMS) during 44 precipitation events occurring during the 2015/16 and 2016/17 wet seasons (October–March). The MRMS QPE products matched the gauge estimates of precipitation reasonably well in approximately half the cases but failed to capture the spatial distribution and intensity of the rainfall in the remaining cases. ERA-Interim reanalysis data suggest that the differences in performance are related to synoptic-scale patterns and AR landfall location. These synoptic-scale differences produce different rainfall distributions and influence basin-scale winds, potentially creating regions of small-scale precipitation enhancement or suppression. Data from four profiling radars indicated that a larger fraction of the precipitation in poorly captured events occurred as shallow stratiform rain unobserved by radar.

Vertical profile of rain: Ka band radar observations at tropical locations

Summary Information of vertical rain structure is important for accurate quantitative precipitation estimation from weather radars and space-borne radars. In this paper, some characteristics of the vertical rain structure observed using a Ka band Micro Rain Radar at three tropical locations in India are presented. The average vertical structure is studied in terms of drop size distribution (DSD), fall velocity, rain rate, liquid water content and radar reflectivity profile. The changes in vertical rain structure with rain rate is observed to be significant only above 20 mm/h in Ahmedabad and Trivandrum, although, in Shillong, significant variation is observed starting from 2 mm/h. Results show a significant negative slope of the fall velocity of rain drops and Ka band radar reflectivity up to melting layer height for rain rate above 20 mm/h indicating a shift in the drop size distribution (DSD) toward lower size at all sites. The near ground measurements show strong variation of rain structure for all rain rates. The mean DSD near ground (

Operational C-Band Dual-Polarization Radar QPE for the Subtropical Complex Terrain of Taiwan

Complex terrain poses significant challenges to the radar based quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) because of blockages to the lower tilts of radar observations. The blockages often force the use of higher tilts data to estimate precipitation at the ground and result in errors due to vertical variations of the radar variables. To obtain accurate radar QPEs in the subtropical complex terrain of Taiwan, a vertically corrected composite algorithm (VCCA) was developed for two C-band polarimetric radars. The new algorithm corrects higher tilt radar variables with the vertical profile of reflectivity (VPR) or vertical profile of specific differential phase (VPSDP) and estimates rainfall rate at the ground through an automated combination ofR-ZandR-KDPrelations. The VCCA was assessed with three precipitation cases of different regimes including typhoon, mei-yu, and summer stratiform precipitation events. The results showed that a combination ofR-ZandR-KDPrelations provided more accurate QPEs than each alone becauseR-Zprovides better rainfall estimates for light rains andR-KDPrelation is more suitable for heavy rains. The vertical profile corrections for reflectivity and specific differential phase significantly reduced radar QPE errors caused by inadequate sampling of the orographic enhancement of precipitation near the ground.

A review of gauge–radar merging methods for quantitative precipitation estimation in hydrology

In the case of a significant precipitation event, hydrological models play a key role in flood mitigation. To develop a hydrological model that produces results with a high degree of confidence, it is imperative that the model be provided with accurate quantitative precipitation estimates as input. For flood forecasting purposes, quantitative precipitation estimates at high spatial and temporal resolutions are preferable. Rain gauges and weather radar are the most widely used instruments for near real-time collection of precipitation estimates. While rain gauges and radar demonstrate certain strengths, both instruments suffer from a wide variety of well-known errors which inhibit their ability to provide optimal precipitation estimates for hydrological models. Considering this, several methods have been developed to merge the estimates of these two instruments in order to minimize their individual weaknesses and take advantage of their respective strengths. The goal of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of gauge–radar merging methods and assess the opportunity for near real-time application of gauge–radar merging methods in hydrology. Methods presented include: mean field bias correction, Brandes spatial adjustment, local bias correction with ordinary kriging, range-dependent bias correction, Bayesian data combination, conditional merging, kriging with external drift and statistical objective analysis. While comparison of gauge–radar merging methods is difficult, several factors, including gauge network design, storm type and the temporal resolution of adjustment, have demonstrated a large effect on the overall accuracy of a particular merging method. The majority of research carried out on near real-time application of gauge–radar merging methods has been conducted outside of Canada. Further research is recommended to assess the capability of using gauge–radar merging schemes with Canadian radar products for precipitation estimation in hydrological applications, including operational hydrological modelling for flood forecasting.

A Real-Time Algorithm for Merging Radar QPEs with Rain Gauge Observations and Orographic Precipitation Climatology

Abstract High-resolution, accurate quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) is critical for monitoring and prediction of flash floods and is one of the most important drivers for hydrological forecasts. Rain gauges provide a direct measure of precipitation at a point, which is generally more accurate than remotely sensed observations from radar and satellite. However, high-quality, accurate precipitation gauges are expensive to maintain, and their distributions are too sparse to capture gradients of convective precipitation that may produce flash floods. Weather radars provide precipitation observations with significantly higher resolutions than rain gauge networks, although the radar reflectivity is an indirect measure of precipitation and radar-derived QPEs are subject to errors in reflectivity–rain rate (Z–R) relationships. Further, radar observations are prone to blockages in complex terrain, which often result in a poor sampling of orographically enhanced precipitation. The current study aims at a synergistic approach to QPE by combining radar, rain gauge, and an orographic precipitation climatology. In the merged QPE, radar data depict high-resolution spatial distributions of the precipitation and rain gauges provide accurate precipitation measurements that correct potential biases in the radar QPE. The climatology provides a high-resolution background of the spatial precipitation distribution in the complex terrain where radar coverage is limited or nonexistent. The merging algorithm was tested on heavy precipitation events in different areas of the United States and provided a superior QPE to the individual components. The new QPE algorithm is fully automated and can be easily implemented in an operational system.

Utility of SCaMPR Satellite versus Ground-Based Quantitative Precipitation Estimates in Operational Flood Forecasting: The Effects of TRMM Data Ingest

Abstract This study examines the utility of satellite-based quantitative precipitation estimates (QPEs) from the Self-Calibrating Multivariate Precipitation Retrieval (SCaMPR) algorithm for hydrologic prediction. In this work, two sets of SCaMPR QPEs, one without and the other with Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission (TRMM) version 6 data integrated, were used as input forcing to the lumped National Weather Service hydrologic model to retrospectively generate flow simulations for 10 Texas catchments over 2000–07. The year 2000 was used for the model spinup, 2001–04 for calibration, and 2005–07 for validation. The results were validated using observed streamflow alongside similar simulations obtained using interpolated gauge QPEs with varying gauge network densities, and still others using the operational radar–gauge multisensor product (MAPX). The focus of the evaluation was on the high-flow events. A number of factors that could impact the relative utility of SCaMPR satellite QPE and gauge-only analysis (GMOSAIC) for flood prediction were examined, namely, 1) the incremental impacts of TRMM version 6 data ingest, 2) gauge density, 3) effects of calibration approaches, and 4) basin properties. Results indicate that ground-sensor-based QPEs in a broad sense outperform SCaMPR QPEs, while SCaMPR QPEs are competitive in a minority of catchments. TRMM ingest helped substantially improve the SCaMPR QPE–based simulation results. Change in calibration forcing, that is, calibrating the model using individual QPEs rather than the MAPX (the most accurate QPE), yielded overall improvements to the simulation accuracy but did not change the relative performance of the QPEs.

Evaluation of radar-gauge merging methods for quantitative precipitation estimates

Abstract. Accurate quantitative precipitation estimates are of crucial importance for hydrological studies and applications. When spatial precipitation fields are required, rain gauge measurements are often combined with weather radar observations. In this paper, we evaluate several radar-gauge merging methods with various degrees of complexity: from mean field bias correction to geostatistical merging techniques. The study area is the Walloon region of Belgium, which is mostly located in the Meuse catchment. Observations from a C-band Doppler radar and a dense rain gauge network are used to estimate daily rainfall accumulations over this area. The relative performance of the different merging methods are assessed through a comparison against daily measurements from an independent gauge network. A 4-year verification is performed using several statistical quality parameters. It appears that the geostatistical merging methods perform best with the mean absolute error decreasing by 40% with respect to the original data. A mean field bias correction still achieves a reduction of 25%. A seasonal analysis shows that the benefit of using radar observations is particularly significant during summer. The effect of the network density on the performance of the methods is also investigated. For this purpose, a simple approach to remove gauges from a network is proposed. The analysis reveals that the sensitivity is relatively high for the geostatistical methods but rather small for the simple methods. The geostatistical merging methods give the best results for all tested network densities and their relative benefit increases with the network density.

Improving QPE and Very Short Term QPF: An Initiative for a Community-Wide Integrated Approach

Accurate quantitative precipitation estimates (QPE) and very short term quantitative precipitation forecasts (VSTQPF) are critical to accurate monitoring and prediction of water-related hazards and water resources. While tremendous progress has been made in the last quarter-century in many areas of QPE and VSTQPF, significant gaps continue to exist in both knowledge and capabilities that are necessary to produce accurate high-resolution precipitation estimates at the national scale for a wide spectrum of users. Toward this goal, a national next-generation QPE and VSTQPF (Q2) workshop was held in Norman, Oklahoma, on 28–30 June 2005. Scientists, operational forecasters, water managers, and stakeholders from public and private sectors, including academia, presented and discussed a broad range of precipitation and forecasting topics and issues, and developed a list of science focus areas. To meet the nation's needs for the precipitation information effectively, the authors herein propose a community-wide integrated approach for precipitation information that fully capitalizes on recent advances in science and technology, and leverages the wide range of expertise and experience that exists in the research and operational communities. The concepts and recommendations from the workshop form the Q2 science plan and a suggested path to operations. Implementation of these concepts is expected to improve river forecasts and flood and flash flood watches and warnings, and to enhance various hydrologic and hydrometeorological services for a wide range of users and customers. In support of this initiative, the National Mosaic and Q2 (NMQ) system is being developed at the National Severe Storms Laboratory to serve as a community test bed for QPE and VSTQPF research and to facilitate the transition to operations of research applications. The NMQ system provides a real-time, around-the-clock data infusion and applications development and evaluation environment, and thus offers a community-wide platform for development and testing of advances in the focus areas.