SRNWP Business Meeting

Thursday 11th October 2007

Definition and set-up of the Expert Teams (ET)

Chair: Jean-François Geleyn

Jean-François had very well prepared his session and came before the participants with a proposition that has been only marginally modified by the Assembly.

Thus, we can jump directly to the final list of the seven Expert Teams:

- ET on data assimilation and use of observations

- ET on diagnostics, validation and verification

- ET on dynamics and coupling

- ET on physical parameterization

- ET on predictability and EPS

- ET on surface and soil processes

- ET on system aspects and interoperability

Important complements have been made in the discussion concerning the:

= ET on dynamics and coupling: This ET is also the ET for the theme "Numerics"

= ET on physical parameterization: This ET deals only with the parameterization of the upper-air processes.

= ET on surface and soil processes: This ET cares also for the boundary layer parameterization and considers both the modeling aspects and the data assimilation aspects for surface and soil.

A discussion took place to decide whether the "socio-economical benefits" of the short-range NWP should be formally considered or not.

It has been decided to consider them because their importance will very probably increase in the future. It has been pointed out that they are already firmly established at the WMO, for example in the WMRP.

A long discussion took place to decide whether an "ET on Applications and Socio-economical Benefits" should be set up or not.

As it was not at all clear what would be the concrete tasks of such an ET concerning the socio-economical aspects, it has been decided not to create one, but to confide this theme to the Advisory Committee, which will follow the developments in this area.

It should also become a task of the Advisory Committee to consider the Applications: three have been explicitly put forward by the audience: hydrology, chemistry and aeronautics. It is sure that in the future the NWP community will have to work much more closely with these groups that it has been the case until today.

Next to the ET list, Jean-François presented a second list: the List of the Cross-Cutting Issues. They are:

- High resolution

- Data pre-processing

- Data assimilation with ensembles

- Numerics

- PBL - surface interaction

- Client-oriented verification

Each of these issues "touches" more than one ET, some of them - as "High resolution" - practically all the ET.

These issues will not be dealt with by dedicated working groups: it will be a duty for each ET to identify the issues relevant for their respective topic and to properly respond to their scientific challenge.

The future Programme Manager, Andras, will write down a first version of the Terms of Reference for each ET.

Each Consortium will have to announce to Andras a contact person for each of the seven ET until the end of November and each ET must choose its Chairperson till the end of the year.

Each ET should have ready for the end of February 2008 a first draft of their work programme and planed activities for 2008.

As already written in the Report "SRNWP Programme, Phase III, 2008-2011", the ET will have the duty to plan and organize SRNWP Workshops in the fields of their respective competences.

It has been agreed that the present rule of one workshop every two years for each theme will be principally maintained and applied with flexibility.

For the workshops in 2008, the future Programme Manager will look at the list of the past workshops in the Programme web site and contact the relevant Expert Teams that should plan and organize a workshop. At the question whether the Workshops on "Non-hydrostatic Modeling" could be maintained as SRNWP Workshops, the answer has been a very positive "yes".