Model:

Updated:

27 times per day, from 00:00, 03:00, 06:00, 09:00, 12:00, 15:00, 18:00, 21:00 UTC

Greenwich Mean Time:

12:00 UTC = 12:00 GMT

Resolution:

0.0625° x 0.0625°

Parameter:

Geopotential in 850 hPa (solid, black lines) and Vorticity advection in 10⁵/(s*6h) (colored lines)

Description:

The two types of vorticity advection are positive (PVA) and negative vorticity advection (NVA). The closed circles in the figure show the 850 hPa absolute vorticity lines, the others the 850 hPa height lines. When an air parcel is moving from an area higher vorticity to an area lower vorticity this is called: PVA (red color). The other way around is called: NVA (blue color). PVA is associated with upper-air divergence, i.e. upward vertical motion. NVA is associated with down ward vertical motion. Therefore, PVA  at 500 hPa is strongest above a surface low, while NVA at 500 hPa is strongest above a surface high.
In operational meteorology Vorticity advection maps are used to identify areas with vertical air motion to see where clouds, precipitation or clear conditions are likely to occur. Keep in mind, however, that PVA is not the same as upward vertical motion. Here temperature advection is important too.

COSMO-DE:

The COSMO-Model is a nonhydrostatic limited-area atmospheric prediction model. It has been designed for both operational numerical weather prediction (NWP) and various scientific applications on the meso-β and meso-γ scale. The COSMO-Model is based on the primitive thermo-hydrodynamical equations describing compressible flow in a moist atmosphere. The model equations are formulated in rotated geographical coordinates and a generalized terrain following height coordinate. A variety of physical processes are taken into account by parameterization schemes.
The basic version of the COSMO-Model (formerly known as Lokal Modell (LM)) has been developed at the Deutscher Wetterdienst (DWD). The COSMO-Model and the triangular mesh global gridpoint model GME form – together with the corresponding data assimilation schemes – the NWP-system at DWD, which is run operationally since end of 1999. The subsequent developments related to the model have been organized within COSMO, the Consortium for Small-Scale Modelling. COSMO aims at the improvement, maintenance and operational application of the non-hydrostatic limited-area modelling system, which is now consequently called the COSMO-Model.

NWP:

Numerical weather prediction uses current weather conditions as input into mathematical models of the atmosphere to predict the weather. Although the first efforts to accomplish this were done in the 1920s, it wasn't until the advent of the computer and computer simulation that it was feasible to do in real-time. Manipulating the huge datasets and performing the complex calculations necessary to do this on a resolution fine enough to make the results useful requires the use of some of the most powerful supercomputers in the world. A number of forecast models, both global and regional in scale, are run to help create forecasts for nations worldwide. Use of model ensemble forecasts helps to define the forecast uncertainty and extend weather forecasting farther into the future than would otherwise be possible.

Wikipedia, Numerical weather prediction, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numerical_weather_prediction(as of Feb. 9, 2010, 20:50 UTC).