LANS Informal Seminar: Jeff Steward

Seminar Title: Non-Smooth Optimization in the Data Assimilation of Satellite Observations In Numerical Weather Prediction
Speaker: Jeff Steward, Florida State University

Date/Time: 2010-05-19 15:00
Location: Bldg 240 Conference Center 1404-1405

Description:
In order to improve numerical weather prediction, observations of the state of the lower atmosphere and surface are essential. Orbiting satellites provide a dense set of observations; however, the data is in the form of radiant flux density. Determining the temperature, wind speed, pressure and other meteorological quantities is thus an inverse ill-posed problem. The presence of clouds is a further complication that makes the optimization problem to use this data, called data assimilation, non-smooth in nature. In this talk, I will present the Aeolus framework developed over the last four months for simplifying the use of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model, present a brief introduction to data assimilation, review the problem of data assimilation of satellite radiances, and discuss non-smooth optimization strategies I will be investigating as part of my Ph. D. thesis at the Florida State University.