Commerce (National Weather Service), the
Department of Defense (Navy/Marine Corps/Air
Force), and the Department of Transportation (Federal
Aviation Administration). Day-to-day product
interpretation and hardware troubleshooting support
for the WSR-88D can be obtained through the
Operational Support Facility (OSF) located in
Norman, Oklahoma. The OSF maintains a 24-hour
hotline to respond to technical problems and questions
that may arise while operating any component of the
WSR-88D. A Naval Oceanographic Component has
been assigned by the Naval Oceanographic Office to
act as a liaison representative, and to specifically assist
any Navy/Marine Corps activity that has a WSR-88D
PUP.
It would be helpful to know the different users of
the WSR-88D and how they interface with one
another. Let’s begin by defining all WSR-88D system
users (fig. 2-31).
Principal Users
Principal users of the WSR-88D are the National
Weather Service (NWS), the Department of Defense
(DOD), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA),
and the subagencies they represent. Principal users can
be further classified by their mode of access to the
RPG. Every principal user needs a PUP to access the
RPG (except PUES).
Associated Principal Users (APUPs)
An associated principal user is the priority
customer supported by each system. Most Navy and
Marine Corps weather offices are APUP sites. APUPs
gain RPG access through a dedicated narrowband link
(phone lines) and generally reside within 100 nmi of
the host RDA. APUPs may request any product which
the RPG is capable of producing, even those that are
unavailable to other principal users. They may also
request the creation of unique products, even if such
requests result in increased RPG workload. While
APUPs are connected via dedicated link, they’re
Figure 2-31.—WSR-88D system users.
furnished with the option to dial-in via commercial
telephone lines. This enables continued receipt of
products in emergency (backup) situations. APUPs
exercising this option lose their "associated" status and
become "non-associated" user (NAPUP).
Non-associated Principal Users (NAPUPs)
Non-associated principal users are identified as
customers that dial-in for access. NAPUPs experience
more restrictions than an APUP would. NAPUPs
cannot request specialty products, nor can they
increase RPG workload in any fashion. In fact, even
routine products, maps, and overlays might be
unavailable to NAPUPs (restrictions vary from system
to system).
Principal Users, External Sources (PUES)
PUES are defined as principal users who access
RPGs through nonstandard means. In other words,
they do not use a PUP to interface with the RPG. The
AFWA is only one of many PUES. The AFWA is a
primary user that requires access to hundreds of radars
each hour. Its mission is to mass-produce charts for
DOD weather stations around the globe. In this
example, the customer’s own computer meets their
needs more efficiently than a PUP would. All PUES
are granted RPG access through reserved ports on a
space available basis.
External Users
"External users" consist of anyone other than a
principal user. External users are normally non-
governmental agencies who are authorized access to
WSR-88D data and products. These agencies may
include news media, private weather services,
broadcast meteorologists, airlines, universities,
aviation facilities, commercial contractors, and more.
These organizations generally pay for dial-in access,
and their product selection is severely limited.
Specialty products are unavailable to external users
and cannot be requested.
SYSTEM COMMUNICATIONS
Good communications is the backbone of any
complicated computer network and the WSR-88D is
no exception. The WSR-88D communications system
consists of two bands that fuse individual components
into one efficiently run operation. The two bands
(wideband and narrowband) are designed to quickly
route data and products between components and
users.
2-30
