Analyses & Numerical Prediction

Environmental Emergency Response (EER)
Users' Interpretation Guidelines
Atmospheric Transport Model Outputs

Environmental Emergency Response (EER) (Restricted Access)

1. INTRODUCTION

Since the 1^st July 1995, the National Meteorological & Oceanographic Centre (NMOC) in Melbourne has been a Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre (RSMC) for Environmental Emergency Response (EER), with responsibility for the Regional Association V area. As part of its responsibility, RSMC Melbourne is required to provide advice, in the form of a basic set of products, on the atmospheric transport of pollutants resulting from nuclear disasters, volcanic eruptions, forest fires, chemical incidents and, perhaps, other causes. (With respect to forest fires and chemical incidents, a self-contained appendix attempts to provide further guidance on procedures from a more general perspective.)

The EER system, in RSMC Melbourne, is currently based around the HYSPLIT, Version 4.0, Atmospheric Transport Model (referred to as HYSPLIT4 below) developed by Roland Draxler at NOAA's Air Resources Laboratory (Draxler 1997) with some contribution from the Bureau of Meteorology Research Centre (Draxler and Hess 1997, 1998). HYSPLIT4 is driven by meteorological input resulting from the operational NWP systems in RSMC Melbourne. The system is maintained in a state of readiness so that the ad-hoc requests for products can be satisfied quickly.

2. NATIONAL METEOROLOGICAL & OCEANOGRAPHIC CENTRE (NMOC),MELBOURNE

The National Meteorological & Oceanographic Centre, Melbourne, is part of the Bureau of Meteorology, Australia's national weather service. The NMOC serves as a centralised operational centre, for the Bureau, maintaining a round-the-clock nationwide weather watch and providing guidance products to the seven Regional Forecasting Centres. In addition to its responsibility as an RSMC for Environmental Emergency Response, the NMOC also performs international functions as a World Meteorological Centre, a Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre with geographical specialization, and a Regional Telecommunications Hub on the GTS. In addition, the NMOC has aviation and oceanographic responsibilities.

The NMOC provides manual and numerical products for a wide range of national and international clients, manages the meteorological data links and their flow of information (including international exchange of data) and supports the centralised computing needs of the Bureau (for operations and other applications such as climate, research and satellite data-processing). Operational applications are implemented and supported by meteorological systems development staff. Most operational numerical weather prediction (NWP) and oceanographic systems originate from the Bureau of Meteorology Research Centre (BMRC). The NMOC's computing facility is based on the UNIX operating system. Communications, database access and general meteorological systems tasks are carried out on Hewlett-Packard UNIX servers, while the main numerical models run on a NEC SX-4. A FDDI link provides the operational connections between the Unix servers and the NEC supercomputer. Real-time data are stored in a NEONS/ORACLE relational database with a StorageTek Mass Store Automatic Cartridge System providing the archive facility. Most products are disseminated nationally via a "DIFACS" system, direct file transfer to other data servers or through the nationally connected McIDAS system. Internationally, products are issued via facsimile or as coded messages on the GTS.

Figure 1. A Schematic Representation of the EER System at the RSMC Melbourne.

3. OPERATIONAL EER SYSTEM

3.1 Integration with the Operational NWP System

A simplified schematic diagram of the operational EER system is shown in Figure 1. The EER system interfaces with all of the current operational NWP systems in NMOC, viz.GASP, TLAPS, LAPS and MESO_LAPS. The domains for each of these systems are shown in Figure 2 and a summary of their characteristics is given in Table 1. GASP (Bourke et al 1995, Seaman et al 1995) provides the necessary meteorological input to enable the EER system to be run anywhere over the globe, whereas the limited area systems are only relevant to the Australian region. The necessary pre-processing, providing the interface, is performed after each run of these NWP systems - thus minimising the time required to produce up-to-date meteorological input for HYSPLIT4. A critical facet of the system is the manual interaction whereby the operational person on duty has to define the running mode of HYSPLIT4 - ie the nature of the episode, the type of guidance required and the location, and characteristics of the source(s) or observations. Products are usually disseminated by fax or through the web. The operational system is run using NMOC's "SMS" scheduler, with the task-edit facilty providing the mechanism for manual interaction. Currently, most of the processing associated with the operational EER system is performed on a NEC SX-4supercomputer.

Figure 2. Domains of the operational NWP systems in RSMC Melbourne.

3.2 HYSPLIT4

HYSPLIT4 (ie Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectories, Version 4.0) system models the atmospheric transport and dispersion of pollutant plumes originating from a variety of sources (eg nuclear, volcanic, fire and, eventually, chemical). The "hybrid" part of the acronym refers to the use of both movable 'Lagrangian' (for the advection and diffusion calculations) and fixed 'Eulerian' (for the concentration calculations) modelling frames of reference within the system.

The current operational configuration of the system makes use of another "hybrid" feature of HYSPLIT4, viz. a mixed algorithm which considers puff dispersion in the horizontal and particle dispersion in the vertical. On the release of a single puff of pollutant from a source, the puff will be advected by the mean wind and will expand as a result of diffusion processes in the turbulent atmosphere. In the system, the puff is allowed to grow laterally to a certain size, after which it splits into several new puffs, each with their respective fraction of the

Table 1: Characteristics of operational NWP systems in RSMC Melbourne.

pollutant mass. These new puffs will, in turn, be subject to advection and diffusion. The splitting of puffs could also occur vertically. However, in the operational configuration, particle - rather than puff - dispersion has been chosen for the vertical calculations. (In cases of strong atmospheric mixing, puff splitting in the vertical can result in too many puffs being generated.)

HYSPLIT4 also includes a number of other processes for removing, adding to, or changing the composition of the pollutant plume. Dry deposition is the transport of pollutant gaseous or particulate species onto surfaces (in the absence of precipitation). In the system, a dry deposition velocity can be defined explicitly or can be calculated using details about the nature of the surface. For particles, gravitational settling, requiring estimates of particle shape, size and density, is another option. In wet deposition, the pollutant is scavenged by the atmospheric hydrometeors and is thus delivered to the earth's surface. HYSPLIT4 allows for both within-cloud ("washout") and below-cloud ("rainout") scavenging. If the winds are sufficiently strong, and the pollutant is not bound to the surface, then resuspension can also occur. In the case of nuclear incidents, radioactive decay is incorporated. Chemical transformations will eventually be included in the system.

HYSPLIT4 can be run in a purely trajectory, or advective, mode (see Figure 1) producing either forward or backward trajectory plots at specified levels. Alternatively, it can be run in a dispersion mode producing exposure (or concentration) and surface deposition charts integrated over various time periods and layers. The nature of a source can be defined according to its strength, height and size, and duration of emission.

3.3 Procedures

3.3.1 Automatically scheduled component

After completion of the 00 or 12 UTC runs of the operational NWP systems (GASP, TLAPS, LAPS and MESO_LAPS) each day, jobs are automatically initiated, using the NMOC's SMS scheduling system, to extract the necessary fields (viz. surface pressure, surface height, precipitation and the multi-level: temperature, specific humidity and wind components). These fields are then interpolated horizontally (to an internal grid) and temporally, before being packed into a form suitable for direct input into HYSPLIT4.

3.3.2 Manual intervention

Details of the source are entered manually using the edit facility of the SMS scheduling system The basic details required for successful running include the latitude/longitude and the height (above sea level) of the source. Other details required depend on the nature of the source and may include, for example, the starting heights of trajectories, height of ash cloud, actual time of release and release amount per hour (if known). The operational staff in the NMOC provide 24 hours/day supervision of the operational NWP and EER system.

3.4 Product Dissemination

A number of mechanisms are available, at RSMC Melbourne, for disseminating the various products from the operational EER system.

3.4.1 Scanning into fax

The traditional mechanism is to enter the relevant fax numbers for the destination and to manually scan the hardcopy printed charts into the fax machines. A FaxStream facility is available to reduce the number of scannings necessary.

3.4.2 PostScript to fax

A direct PostScript to fax facility is available for operational use. This saves the need for manual scanning. As the charts are produced, they are converted into PostScript format (which is also required for hardcopy production) and are sent directly to the HylaFAX system. The various destination fax numbers are stored in the task script and can be edited, as required.

(iv) Forecast Volcanic Ash Dispersion to: +48 hrs for GASP and TLAPS;

(v) Forecast Smoke Dispersion to: +72 hrs for GASP, +48 hrs for LAPS and TLAPS,

+36 hrs for MESO_LAPS.

3.5.3 Graphical products

The basic products from the operational EER system are in chart form and are produced using NCAR graphics.

3.5.4 Request protocol

On receipt of a faxed request from delegated authorities within RA V, an acknowledgment fax is sent. After successful running of the required tasks in the scheduler, the requested products are then sent by fax. Requests for volcanic ash guidance are addressed to the Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC), in Darwin. Internal Bureau requests for products are usually directed to the Shift Supervisor of NMOC. However, as mentioned above, certain details of the source (minimally, its latitude and longitude) need to be specified in the request.

Table 2. Standard settings used in the production of charts (with GASP meteorological input). (These settings can readily be changed, if requested.)

4. COMPLETE SET OF OUTPUT MAPS FOR THE DEFAULT NUCLEAR SCENARIO

Figures 3 to 7 show a complete set of the 5 output charts for the default nuclear scenario. For this sample set, the source is located at 34.05⁰S and 150.98⁰E (ie Lucas Heights, Australia). The test release shown was assumed to start at 0900 UTC 10 August 1999. The basic set of 5 charts provide forecast guidance up to 72 hours ahead , depending on the release time specified.

Figure 3 shows the first 24-hour (of a 72-hour forecast) time-integrated exposure from the ground to 500 metres.

Figure 4 shows, the same as for Figure 3 but, the second 24-hour period.

Figure 5 shows, the same as for Figure 3 but, the third 24-hour period.

Figure 6 shows the total accumulated ground level deposition (up to 72 hours, depending on the release time).

Figure 7 shows forecast (up to 72 hours, depending on the release time) forward trajectories starting at heights of 500, 1500 and 3000 metres.

4.1 Description associated with itemised output charts

For the present documentation purposes only, the first exposure chart (Figure 3) has been itemised (with circled numbers) to highlight the following aspects of the chart:

1: Identifies the chart as coming from RSMC Melbourne.

2: Indicates the nature of the event - in this case a Test or Exercise.

3: Defines the integration period over which the concentrations apply.

4: Defines the date/time at which this particular chart was produced.

5: Defines the latitude and longitude of the release location in degrees (to the nearest hundredth) - where the Southern Hemisphere has a negative latitude and the Western Hemisphere has a negative longitude).

6: Indicates that the radioactive pollutant is Cesium 137.

7: Gives the half-life of the pollutant named in item 6.

8: Shows the date/time at which the release started.

9: Shows the height of the release ( in metres).

10: Indicates that the air concentration, or exposure, is averaged from the ground to 500 metres, in units of Becquerel second / metre³ . Ground level deposition may also be specified here in units of Becquerel / metre² .

Figure 3. Time-integrated exposure, from the ground to 500 metres, for the first 24-hour period. (This chart has been itemised.)

Figure 4. Time-integrated exposure, from the ground to 500 metres, for the second 24-hour period.

Figure 5. Time-integrated exposure, from the ground to 500 metres, for the third 24-hour period.

Figure 6. Total accumulated ground level deposition from time of release from source.

Figure 7. Itemised chart showing forecast forward trajectories starting at heights of 500, 1500 and 3000 metres.

11: Indicates the values of the 4 concentration contours. The units are specified in item 10.

12: Indicates the duration of the release.

13: Indicates the maximum concentration, corresponding to a filled-in square on the chart.

14: Indicates the number of Becquerel units of radioactivity associated with the release.

15: States the deposition processes and the horizontal resolution of the grid used in the run of the transport model that produced the chart.

16: Indicates the operational atmospheric NWP model providing meteorological input to the transport model.

In the trajectory chart (Figure 7) the lateral, or horizontal, depiction of trajectory paths on a map background are annotated by the times (UTC) at 6-hourly intervals with different symbols (filled-in squares, circles and triangles) for the different heights. The vertical motion is displayed at the bottom of the chart with the same 6-hourly intervals and symbols. Some of the different features have been itemised in Figure7 as follows:

1: Defines the type of trajectories (forward or backward) on the chart.

2. Shows the starting date/time of the trajectories.

3. Gives the type of vertical motion used in the calculations in the transport model.

4: Shows the vertical motion of the trajectories and defines the levels of the trajectories (depicted in the larger horizontal display above).

5: Indicates the 6-hourly intervals by symbols (filled-in squares, circles and triangles).

6: Defines the starting heights (in metres or hpa) for the forward trajectories.

5. OTHER PRODUCTS AVAILABLE FROM RSMC MELBOURNE AND CONTACT FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Many different transport and dispersion products can be produced from the various running modes (see section 3.5.2 above) of the operational EER system. Some examples are shown of guidance available for volcanic ash (Figure 8), smoke episodes associated with forest fires (Figure 9) and the back-tracking of paths taken by atmospheric aerosols (Figure 10). In addition to the EER products, standard meteorological charts (depicting, for example, wind and precipitation fields) and satellite imagery can be produced for the region of interest.

For any additional information, please contact Paul Stewart (Telephone: (613) 9669 4039; Fax: (613) 9662 1222; Email: p.stewart@bom.gov.au).

Figure 8. Panel display showing example (from an Intercomparison Test) of volcanic ash guidance available.

Figure 9. Forecast concentrations from 5 sources, during SE Asian fire episode 1997.

Figure 10. Backward (6-day) trajectories, ending at Cape Grim, using analysis data.

REFERENCES

Bourke, W., Hart, T., Steinle, P., Seaman, R., Embery, G., Naughton, M. and Rikus L. 1995. Evolution of the Bureau of Meteorology's Global Assimilation and Prediction system. Part 2: resolution enhancements and case studies. Australian Meteorological Magazine, 44, 19-40.

Draxler, R.R. 1997. HYSPLIT_4.0 -- User's Guide. NOAA Tech. Mem. ERL ARL.

Draxler, R.R. and Hess, G.D. 1997. Description of the HYSPLIT_4 Modelling System. NOAA Tech. Mem. ERL ARL-224.

Draxler, R.R. and Hess, G.D. 1998. Overview of the HYSPLIT_4 modelling system for trajectories, dispersion and deposition. Australian Meteorological Magazine, 47, 295-308.

Seaman, R., Bourke, W., Steinle, P., Hart, T., Embery, G., Naughton, M. and Rikus, L. 1995. Evolution of the Bureau of Meteorology's Global Assimilation and Prediction system. Part 1: analysis and initialisation. Australian Meteorological Magazine, 44, 1-18.

APPENDIX

PROCEDURES TO INTEGRATE AND ACTIVATE NMSS/RSMCS IN CASE OF CHEMICAL INCIDENTS OR FOREST FIRES

SUMMARY

The following is an attempt to delineate, or highlight, some of the general and specific procedures, and associated information flows, relevant to the transboundary transportation of smoke and haze (resulting from forest fires) and other air-borne pollutants (resulting from major chemical incidents).

INTRODUCTION

The recent forest fires in South East Asia, during the latter part of 1997 and early 1998, and the associated haze and smoke problems affecting several countries in the region (WMO 1998) has highlighted the important role that NMSs and specialised WMO centres can play in the management of such events. These events, probably because of their relatively ad-hoc nature, tend to cause a certain degree of confusion at their onset resulting in unacceptable delays for a meaningful response from the various agencies. Thus, such events also emphasise the need for improvement in the management.

Part of this management improvement can be gained through ongoing development, and formalisation, of procedures to integrate and coordinate the abilities and facilities of NMSs, specialised centres within the area of interest (eg ASMC) and the various RSMCs with Environmental Emergency Response (EER) specialisation. In view of the potential risk from chemical incidents, it would be advantageous if the procedures were also applicable to chemical episodes involving the transboundary, or long range, transport of air-borne anthropogenic pollutants.

General and acceptable procedures should form the basis for a broad operational coordination framework for alerting and activating, in a rapid and effective manner, neighbouring NMSs and specialised centres, if necessary, whether for intraboundary or transboundary episodes. Also internal procedures may have to be set up, within NMSs and specialised centres, for the alerting, or notification, of observed incidents as they arise, and also for the timely updating, generation and dissemination of the various observational and forecast guidance products.

It is important during ongoing development of procedures to be aware of some of the (WMO) programmes which may have an impact on the characteristics of procedures being formulated. Two such programmes are PARTS and RHAP WMO 1998).

The following attempts to define the main information flows between the various agencies and some of the associated general and specific procedures for providing a rapid and effective response.

OVERALL PERSPECTIVE

When an environmental incident (caused by, for example, forest fires or some chemical explosion) occurs, it usually initiates an alert of some description which, in turn, eventually prompts a response from relevant agencies, or authorities, within the country (or countries) affected. In the case of a meteorological response, from either the NMSs or the WMO specialised centres, the generation of numerous products and their dissemination may be the primary action (Figure A1). In some cases, the provision of meteorological briefings (either specialised or general) to various agencies may form part of the response - even though, in the case of local agencies, this may be more appropriately carried out by regional offices. Depending on the nature, or longevity, of the incident, the response could be expected to be ongoing.

Figure A1. Basic functionality required by procedures in the management of environmental incidents.

ENVIRONMENTAL INCIDENT ALERT

The initial alert for an environmental incident may arise from a number of different origins (Figure A2) - which may include "word-of-mouth" (eg media or various authorities) or more direct and objective observational (eg from in-situ monitoring or satellite remote sensing - from, say, AVHRR, geostationary or TOMS data) origins. Notification of an emergency may also come initially from other NMSs or WMO specialised centres. In the case of a real emergency, there may be an inundation of alerts which can quickly confuse the situation. In such cases, mechanisms for prioritising the alerts need to be put in place. Initially, for eg, alert messages containing specific details about the source of the incident may be of more value than those describing the effects of the incident.

GENERAL RESPONSE PROCEDURE

Initially on receiving an alert message, or a request for action, the NMSs or WMO specialised centres should send (if appropriate) an acknowledgment of receipt to the originating body. At this stage, it is perhaps worth highlighting the need for a 24-hour a day operational real-time capacity, in the NMSs or WMO specialised centres, in order to handle the emergency incidents in a quick and effective manner. This may involve introducing new duties and functions for the existing operational shift staff. After sending an acknowledgment, further notification should then be sent out to other centres and agencies indicating that there has been a request for action. The NMSs, or WMO specialised centres, then need to set about the preparation of the various guidance products and their consequent dissemination. Once the initial set of products has been distributed, it is then perhaps necessary that any further development of the episode be continually monitored and that updated products be continually prepared and disseminated (Figure A3). Finally, when the episode has finished, it is also important that some notification be sent out stating the same to save an unnecessary waste of resources.

Figure A3. Response by NMSs, and centres, on receiving alert message.

PRODUCT GENERATION

When an alert message is received by the NMSs, or WMO specialised centres, a number of procedures should spring into place to generate the necessary products. Information about the location and type of incident is critical for the generation of meaningful products. The types of products can perhaps be categorised into those of a more general meteorological type and those associate with the output from an Atmospheric Transport Model (Figure A4). The former may include real-time processed satellite imagery and data (depicting, for eg, hot spots and plume extent), displays of in-situ measurements, various monitoring products (eg AQIs and PMs) and analysed and forecast wind and precipitation fields centred on the source location(s). In addition, more specific forecast products, using known details about the source together with input from the latest operational, real-time NWP model run, can be generated using the ATM. Products from the ATM include forecast trajectories and dispersion plots. The increased use of satellite remote sensed data, for both diagnostic purposes and also for eventual direct assimilation into the ATM - thus effectively enhancing the modelling of LRTAP, are important features of the RHAP and PARTS (WMO 1998).

Figure A4. Product generation within NMSs and/or WMO specialised centres.

PRODUCT DISSEMINATION PROCEDURES

A number of different procedures can be used to disseminate, or make available, generated products to other NMSs, agencies or WMO specialised centres. These include using fax, the GTS, telex, phone or mail (Figure A5). The availability of direct PostScript to fax facilities and the attachment of 'gif' files to mail messages are noted as newer ways of disseminating products. Each mechanism has advantages whether it be the reliability or robustness of the communication channels or the types of products that can be sent. In addition, the products can be made available through the web. This may imply that individual centres maintain their own web page or that common shared web pages, with other centres, are used. In view of the probable restricted access for many of the products, it is advisable that password protection (implying that users are registered) be put in place.

PRODUCT DESTINATIONS

Associated with each of the dissemination mechanisms, mentioned above, are the intended destinations for the various products (Figure A6). These may include neighbouring NMSs, WMO specialised centres and various national and international agencies. These destinations will be incorporated into the dissemination mechanisms in different ways. When using faxes, telex or phones, the respective numbers of the various destinations will be required. For the web products, restricted user access (with password protection) will be required for the various

Figure A6. Product destinations<

"destinations". Email will require an operationally valid address for each of the destinations. The need for back-up procedures is also emphasised - eg the same products could be faxed and placed on the web. The availability of various audits with faxes (showing whether products arived at the destinations successfully) is noted.

STANDARDISATION OF PRODUCTS AND PROCEDURES

The following comments are more in the nature of suggestions rather than specific recommendations. Thereis a need to standardise the various products that may be generated during an environmental emergency. The standards need to be developed carefully, and then basically kept to, so that the products will be genrally understandable and useful. For example, it may be advisable to produce forecast meteorological charts which always extend a pre-defined number of degrees of longitude to the East and West of the source location. Standardisation in the definitions of AQIs would also help alleviate confusion. It may also be advisable to run forecast forward trajectories out to 48 hours, say, and to show only 3 trajectories on each chart. Again, with respect to the ATM, it may be advisable to have a default source, with certain pre-defined characteristics, for botha smoke and a chemical incident, in case not much is known about the source of the event at the outset. It is also noted that descriptive products play a useful role in emergencies. These can include joint (or combined) statements, generated by 2 or more centres, that give a united opinion on the situation. Again, the importance of back-up procedures is emphasised. These may range from the use of back-up fax numbers (in case fax lines are busy) to the back-up of systems producing ATM output (in case of computer maintenance occurring at the time of the incident).

There are perhaps a number of conventions that could be adopted when disseminating products, to facilitate usage. These may include:

(i) Faxes: cover sheets specifying issuing centre, issued date/time (UTC), event specification (eg source location), content of following sheets;

(ii) Email: specification of format of any attachments;

(iii) Web: notification by email that products have been updated (and notification of password changes, if necessary);

(iii) Acknowledgements: often these will save confusion when trying to ascertain whether products have reached their destination (even though automatic checking is sometimes available).

Finally, for later evaluation, it is perhaps advisable to keep a log of events as they happen, provided time permits.

SYSTEM UPDATES AND TESTS

In order to keep an emergency response system, within NMSs and WMO specialised centres, in a state of readiness, it is necessary to keep checking and testing the various components to make sure they are in a satisfactory working state. This is all the more important in the case of a system that has to cater for ad-hoc, and maybe infrequent, events. Internal changes such as upgrades and changes to computer operating and NWP systems are examples which may impact on the generation of products. From the dissemination point of view, fax and phone numbers and the various addresses can change. In view of these possibilities, it is important that regular tests should be carried out. These tests can vary from just sending out faxes to various centres or agencies to check the validity of numbers to more comprehensive tests whereby various products are exchanged with other centres and are then compared. These tests should be relatively frequent (eg monthly) with different scenarios. These tests also have the advantage of making more of the operational staff familiar with the different procedures eventually leading to greater efficiencies in response. It is important that any test products contain a prominent heading saying that they are part of a test - to distinguish them from those for a real emergency. Also it is important that messages should be sent out at the conclusion of a test to say that it has officially ended.

CONCLUSION

The need for simple, quick and effective procedures is paramount in the good management of environmental emergency incidents, such as those caused by, or resulting from, forest fires or chemical explosions. The above discussion has attempted to highlight some of the procedures and at the same time make some suggestions in an attempt to improve the management of such episodes.

REFERENCE:

WMO 1998. "Workshop on Regional Transboundary Smoke and Haze in South-East Asia", 2-5 June, Singapore.

ACRONYMS USED

AQI - Air Quality Index.

ASMC - The ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre, Singapore. (A centre with WMO geographical specialisation).

ATM - Atmospheric Transport Model.

AVHRR - Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer.

GTS - Global Telecommunications System (WMO).

LRTAP - Long Range Transport of Smoke Haze And Other Pollutants.

NMS - National Meteorological Service.

NWP - Numerical Weather Prediction.

PARTS - The Program to Address ASEAN Regional Transboundary Smoke.

PM - Particulate Matter (particle sizes in microns).

RHAP - The Regional Haze Action Plan.

RSMC (EER) - Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre (with Environmental Emergency Response specialisation). Designated centres include: Beijing, Bracknell, Melbourne, Montreal, Obninsk, Tokyo, Toulouse and Washington.

TOMS - Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer.