Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Tropical cyclones/Tracks/Archive 1

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Archive 1

Map of Alma

I have taken some liberties with your image of Alma. I found that the image was 1,124,365 bytes (24 bits/16 million colors). I did a little work and found that by converting the image to 8 bits (256 colors) (non-interlaced & optimized palette) (.png) the image reduced down to 91,902. However, converting to .jpg (24 bits) and with a compression of 43% the image yieled a size of 27,195 bytes with no distortion.

  • Summary:
  • Original file: 1,124,365 bytes (.png)
  • Experimental .png : 91,902 bytes
  • New file: 27,195 bytes

An administrator told me that they were not concerned with file sizes. I believe Wikipedia could, in the future, be bogged down in large files.

I will give you full credit on the updated image page.

Noles1984 14:36, 6 June 2006 (UTC)

Actually, since all revisions of an image are stored on the server, we now have a 91 KB file and a 1 MB file as well. Titoxd(?!?) 19:18, 4 July 2006 (UTC)
While standard PNG files are quite inefficient, converting to paletted PNG or to compressed JPEG format is lossy and DOES have distortion (however small). If size is a concern it would be better to change the track generator program to put new images into the desired format rather than convert all old ones. Note that the amount of old track images is huge (see the commons) and converting any reasonable number of them by hand would be a daunting and error-prone task. — jdorje (talk) 03:49, 27 August 2007 (UTC)

Direction of tracks

In looking at some of the tracks, I came to think that it might be beneficial to have some indication where the storm formed and where it died. For some storms, it's hard to tell what direction the storm took along the indicated path. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 65.220.47.130 (talk) 18:10, August 23, 2007 (UTC)

Yes it would. How would you go about indicating this? It's rather tricky since data points may be arbitrarily close or far apart, and because the track needs to look reasonably good at a thumbnail size as well. — jdorje (talk) 03:50, 27 August 2007 (UTC)

Squares and Triangles

What do the squares and triangles represent in the storm path maps? MikeM2010 (talk) 06:33, 27 July 2008 (UTC)

Triangles represent generally tropical disturbances, post-tropical cyclones, extratropical cyclones or other types of low. Squares generally represent subtropical storms. -Ramisses (talk) 15:51, 27 July 2008 (UTC)
Thanks. MikeM2010 (talk) 15:55, 27 July 2008 (UTC)

Cumulative track maps

It would be very helpful if we had separate data files for cumulative track maps that need to be regularly updated (such as those in List of retired Atlantic hurricane names and List of retired Pacific hurricane names). Since I have those two files, I posted them at Wikipedia:WikiProject Tropical cyclones/Tracks/Retired Atlantic and Wikipedia:WikiProject Tropical cyclones/Tracks/Retired Pacific. I hope people do the same when they have to update those for one reason or another. Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 23:38, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

I can't download it...

There is nothing in the download folder. Am I missing something? Syntheticalconnections (talk)(my contribs) 05:16, 22 June 2010 (UTC)

The generator is not packaged in the downloads folder. You have to get it using the svn co commands listed on the page. Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 17:34, 22 June 2010 (UTC)
I'm not sure how I'm supposed to do that. Thanks in advance. Syntheticalconnections (talk)(my contribs) 19:19, 22 June 2010 (UTC)
Well, if you have a linux or OS X system, you can go to a terminal or command line prompt and type in the commands directly. You can use TortoiseSVN for Windows, but no one has gotten the track map generator to work on Windows AFAIK. Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 19:31, 22 June 2010 (UTC)
Oh... That's why i just use GE and have all the tracks there just for me to see. Ok then... I guess nevermind then... Syntheticalconnections (talk)(my contribs) 19:55, 22 June 2010 (UTC)

Just got a virtual machine running Ubuntu, maybe I can get it now? I got it because I am trying to get RAMS working on my computer to simulate weather, but I don't think it's gonna be easy. Well... I'll just have to try! Syntheticalconnections (talk)(my contribs) 06:32, 24 June 2010 (UTC)

My copy runs in Ubuntu, so it should work. Just make sure that you run sudo apt-get install libcairo2-dev. Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 21:11, 4 July 2010 (UTC)

Track Generation

Hi. Is there any way to generate tracks on Windows Vista? Thanks in advance, Bobby122 Contact Me 19:57, 4 July 2010 (UTC)

Yes, you just have to download cygwin and use it for the line commands. All the rest is the same. --Yueof theNorth 20:15, 4 July 2010 (UTC)
I'm having a little trouble getting it to run. How do you start it up?--Bobby122 Contact Me 14:27, 5 July 2010 (UTC)

CYGWIN

Hi, I'm using CYGWIN and after I run the command to download the program I am not sure where the tracks directory is located. Does anyone know? Thanks in advance, Bobby122 Contact Me (C) 19:11, 19 July 2010 (UTC)

It is at C:/cygwin/home/User account name --Yueof theNorth 19:49, 19 July 2010 (UTC)

Projection

The orthographic map you're using is a little skewed so the latitudes and longitudes aren't quite 1:1. Do you use a transformation matrix to compensate? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.86.161.80 (talk) 20:27, 9 September 2010 (UTC)

We are using a equirectangular projection, and we're not applying any corrections to it, as most of the distortion is in high latitudes where tropical cyclones usually don't exist. While I don't think anyone would be opposed to switching projections, we'd have to figure out which projection to use (a pretty complex problem by itself), and someone would need to take the lead on applying the transformation to the image matrix. Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 01:03, 10 September 2010 (UTC)

Need help

So if I want to use the track generator, what should I do? I tried but doesn't seem to work. HurricaneSpin (talk · contribs) 17:05, 2 October 2010 (UTC)

Where exactly does it not work for you? Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 07:41, 3 October 2010 (UTC)
I use a Windows Vista, which doesn't even download. HurricaneSpin (talk · contribs) 19:32, 3 October 2010 (UTC)
It says "Couldn't open file 'natlantic.txt': No such file or directory
Storm reader returned an error."

HurricaneSpin (talk · contribs) 00:04, 5 October 2010 (UTC)

Ease of use

Hi. I was looking into how the current storm tracks were generated, and ended up here. To be honest, I don't find this method easy at all. For an average editor with moderate web skills (like me), the downloading/launching procedure is somewhat in alien language. ;) I agree that something is better than nothing, but I just want to know, how possible is it to compile the current software into something like an .exe file, so that it may be simply downloaded (in the usual fashion) and installed like any other software, and used by any other editors? Rehman(+) 11:12, 6 October 2010 (UTC)

In Windows, extremely hard. It's rather simple in OS X and Linux. Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 19:10, 6 October 2010 (UTC)

Expand the symbol table

I think the symbol table should be expanded to include the triangles and squares (The circles mean the storm is active when it was posted with those coords?), I do not know what they mean and it should be more clear to the reader what they are looking at. - Knowledgekid87 (talk) 03:41, 18 October 2010 (UTC)

It already does... Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 03:52, 18 October 2010 (UTC)

How to Download Cairo,GCC,Automake, Aautoconf ,Perl and Cygwin

It have some many hyperlink in Cairo,GCC,Automake, Aautoconf,Perl and Cygwin Website,I don't know how to choose. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Aretgil (talk • contribs) 08:05, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Equator

Hello,

I was wondering if the track map generator could make tracks for storms that theoretically crossed the equator, and if so, how.

Thanks,

Iune

173.68.140.37 (talk) 22:05, 2 December 2010 (UTC)

That really is me! — Iune(talk) 22:06, 2 December 2010 (UTC)

I asked CB and he couldn't think of a way so it would be a case of merging the two tracks by hand. Though i do wonder if doing 180 -XX would work XX being the position latitude.Jason Rees (talk) 03:49, 4 December 2010 (UTC)

How to use it

I don't not how to use,help me!What is it say?I don't know? . — Preceding unsigned comment added by Aretgil (talk • contribs) 12:04, 12 December 2010 (UTC)

Could someone please help make the track of WANDA in 1956 in west Pacific?

Track from unisys.com: [1], the second strongest typhoon since 1950 in mainland China? I'm using MS Windows and it is not so convenient for me to do it myself. Thanks a lot. Siyuwj (talk) 13:28, 30 December 2010 (UTC)

Color coding on track maps confusing

Aren't the colors used to differentiate a Tropical storm from a Tropical depression confusingly similar? When looking at many of these track maps I find it difficult to see T-storm <-> T-depression transitions due to their color code being so similar. If possible I would suggest looking into adjusting the colours used for these two classes in order to more clearly differentiate them. Thanks for reading! Jozsefs (talk) 21:39, 16 June 2012 (UTC)

Some things I don't know

I know quite a lot about quite a lot, but I know next to nothing about generating these tracks, or even what the instructions mean.

Could someone perhaps generate a track map for Typhoon Nina (Seniang) 1968? Then let me know.

Thanks.

John of Cromer in China (talk) mytime= Tue 10:29, wikitime= 02:29, 27 November 2012 (UTC)

-- Keith Edkins ( Talk ) 08:49, 2 December 2012 (UTC)

That's perfect. Thanks a lot. John of Cromer in China (talk) mytime= Sun 17:05, wikitime= 09:05, 2 December 2012 (UTC)

Getting the program to create tracks

Ok, I spent the better part of this morning installing this program. I've successfully completed the steps up until the creation of the actual map. I'm not certain of how to use the track.c file (or the file that the program is in) to run or how to input data from the storms track into the system. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Supportstorm (talk) 16:35, 7 May 2013 (UTC)

To use other source files for the storm tracks other than the Atlantic, you need to use:
./track --input BASIN_FILE.txt
Ex: ./track --input epac.txt
This will allow you to use the files for storms out of the NAtl. You can add storms not found in the program's datasets by adding another text file (in HURDAT format) to the tracks directory. You can then run "./track --input YOURFILENAME.txt" — Iune(talk) 23:49, 7 May 2013 (UTC)
Thanks! I'm off to go try that now. Supportstorm (talk) 00:14, 8 May 2013 (UTC)
Well, I guess I'm not knowledgeable enough with the programs and codes listed here to run it correctly. I'm done trying for today. :/ Supportstorm (talk) 01:43, 8 May 2013 (UTC)

Hope this isn't too much to ask, but would you happen to know why I'm getting undefined references to Cairo from the track.c file whenever I'm intstalling the program? Supportstorm (talk) 14:50, 10 May 2013 (UTC)

The latest version of Cairo (1.12, I think) depreciated several important commands that the generator used. I tried 1.10 on Slackware Linux and it worked– the only problem is that I cannot find a Windows binary for it. — Iune(talk) 21:12, 10 May 2013 (UTC)
Thanks for this info. By the way I'm using Ubuntu so it shouldn't be a problem. Supportstorm (talk) 22:41, 10 May 2013 (UTC)
Ok that didn't work. I used the track.c file that Keith Edkins has on his webpage and was able to eliminate the problem, however got this error:
track.c:25:14: error: expected identifier or ‘(’ before numeric constant
make[1]: *** [track.o] Error 1
make[1]: Leaving directory `/home/raven/tracks'
make: *** [all] Error 2

Supportstorm (talk) 02:48, 11 May 2013 (UTC)

Well I've norrowed the problem down to the system not wanting to use the define pie command in the track.c file to complete the assembly of the track program. I'm, at this point, generally irratated that I can't get this straight forward program running on my Ubuntu system without errors. Anyone who would like to direct me in the right direction feel free to message me. Supportstorm (talk) 03:36, 18 May 2013 (UTC)
I will try to go ahead and figure out what the API changes were to the cairo library to get this to link correctly again. I'll keep you posted. Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 03:36, 4 June 2013 (UTC)
I managed to make a clean install of the track map generator using Cairo 1.12.14 without too many problems. Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 03:05, 5 June 2013 (UTC)

Track map generator now handles HURDAT2

Hi all,

Starting from r192, the track map generator can now parse best-track files in the HURDAT2 format. In order to do that, you would invoke the track map generator something like this: 

./track --year 2004 --name ivan --format hurdat2 --input ../data/hurdat2/natlantic.hurdat2.txt

The main changes are:

  1. Add --format hurdat2 to tell the program to use the new HURDAT2 parser (this parser will become the default in the future eventually, but for now, the program still defaults to HURDAT1).
  2. Add --input ../data/hurdat2/natlantic.hurdat2.txt to tell the program where the HURDAT2 best track file is located. This file should be included with the source code files when you download the new versions of the generator.

Also, I added some more logic for the automagic filling of {{WPTC track map}}; it will now recognize the correct hurricane season article and pre-fill the template with that info. Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 03:41, 7 June 2013 (UTC)

Edited JTWC 2013 best track data

As JTWC releases the 2013 best track data, I have updated all tropical cyclones in 2013 they recognise (Supportstorm did the North Indian Ocean part), although 20P (Tim) disappeared mysteriously. 14 tropical cyclones in the Northwest Pacific and 1 tropical cyclone in the Australian region are extended with RSMC best track data for the extratropical or overland period. Here is the package if you want to use the files: cl.ly/WWap -- Meow 13:00, 10 July 2014 (UTC)

Good catch regarding Tim - its been reported to the JTWC director who is investigating it.Jason Rees (talk) 11:56, 11 July 2014 (UTC)
Tim is back! -- Meow 09:05, 12 July 2014 (UTC)
Nice - Is there any chance of extending the track to the GOC using BoM data.Jason Rees (talk) 11:04, 12 July 2014 (UTC)
What is the GOC? -- Meow 14:43, 12 July 2014 (UTC)
The Gulf of Carpentaria - its where the system first developed per BoM.Jason Rees (talk) 14:53, 12 July 2014 (UTC)
Done. What other storms of this season should be extended? -- Meow 12:25, 16 July 2014 (UTC)
Thanks - The only one i can think off is Evan, since it impacted New Zealand while extratropical. To do this i would suggest using data from SPEArTC which published RSMC Nadi/TCWC Wellingtons BT earlier this year for 12/13.Jason Rees (talk) 13:43, 16 July 2014 (UTC)
Evan 2012 track.png has been significantly changed. -- Meow 05:12, 19 July 2014 (UTC)

Category Five dots are black

I've recently switched from using Ubuntu to Cygwin (64-bit) to create the tracks and for the most part it ran smoothly. However after I created a track of a storm of category 5 intensity I found the usually red points were black. I've seen some users use the track program over the years have the same problem. So, I'm wondering if there's a way to correct the error or is it just unique to Cygwin? Supportstorm (talk) 16:45, 3 July 2014 (UTC)

I couldn't replicate the problem in Ubuntu or OS X... :/ Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 16:07, 11 July 2014 (UTC)
I went back to using a 32-bit version of Cygwin and the problem stopped. Guess it was just an isolated occurrence? Supportstorm (talk) 23:13, 21 July 2014 (UTC)

OSX

Hi,

I've been trying to build the track map generator on OSX and I've run into an error. I installed automake, autoconf, gettext, and cairo from brew but when I run ./autogen.sh && make, it fails with the error "cairo.h not found". Does anyone have a solution for this problem?

Thanks, — Iune(talk) 20:36, 29 July 2014 (UTC)

Type mdfind libcairo on a Terminal prompt. What do you get? Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 23:21, 29 July 2014 (UTC)

I get this: 

/usr/local/Cellar/cairo/1.12.16_1/lib/cairo/libcairo-trace.0.dylib
/usr/local/Cellar/cairo/1.12.16_1/lib/libcairo-gobject.2.dylib
/usr/local/Cellar/cairo/1.12.16_1/lib/libcairo-script-interpreter.2.dylib
/usr/local/Cellar/cairo/1.12.16_1/lib/libcairo.2.dylib
/usr/local/Cellar/cairo/1.12.16_1/lib/cairo/libcairo-trace.a
/usr/local/Cellar/cairo/1.12.16_1/lib/libcairo-script-interpreter.a
/usr/local/Cellar/cairo/1.12.16_1/lib/libcairo-gobject.a
/usr/local/Cellar/cairo/1.12.16_1/lib/libcairo.a
/usr/X11/lib/libcairo.2.dylib
/usr/X11/lib/libcairo-script-interpreter.2.dylib
/Users/[USERNAME]/Wine Files/drive_c/windows/mono/mono-2.0/etc/mono/config
/opt/X11/lib/libcairo.2.dylib
/opt/X11/lib/libcairo-script-interpreter.2.dylib

— Iune(talk) 00:20, 3 August 2014 (UTC)

Instead of using brew, I used MacPorts; the track map generator is now working :) 98.116.236.119 (talk) 21:41, 5 August 2014 (UTC)

Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Accessibility#Color compliance

Per the MoS - "Ensure that color is not the only method used to convey important information". These tracks as being currently generated fail this standard. For a color-blind or similarly impaired user, the intensity information could be hard to interpret. I have suggestions for long-term improvements:

  1. Use different symbols for each storm intensity. I suggest a triangle for depressions (△), square for storms (⬜), and circled-numbers for the SSHWS category levels (① ② ③ ④ ⑤). You can tint these using the same MOS-compliant color scheme proposed for use on the rest of the project.
  2. Include a key to these symbols on the side or across the bottom of each track image. Include the storm intensity terms, and preferably with the wind speed ranges, so that the information is easy to reference.
  3. When generating the tracks, zoom in as close to each track as you can, while still being able to give geographic context.

I don't see any need to worry about those images already generated, this is a long-term beneficial improvement. -- Netoholic @ 03:23, 2 August 2014 (UTC)

Could we just add alt text? YE Pacific Hurricane 03:50, 2 August 2014 (UTC)
Alt text is more for the benefit of totally blind persons. Adjustments that are needed in order to comply with WP:COLOR are intended to aid only impaired vision (color-blindness, etc). -- Netoholic @ 04:14, 2 August 2014 (UTC)
@Netoholic: I disagree with the notion that the tropical cyclone track maps require keys and the inclusion of additional symbols, and that this suggestion is not a feasible solution. With the current status of the tracks, there are already additional symbols for when cyclones were remnant lows, extratropical cyclones, and subtropical cyclones. Adding even more small shapes for even more classifications will make maps littered with multiple symbols measuring mere pixels across, and this will be utterly confusing on season and climatological maps where there there are usually hundreds if not thousands of individual data points of very high density. Adding small text to the categories of the Saffir-Simpson scale will furthermore exacerbate this issue as storms often trace over their former paths, covering up previous plots. One example of such an image is File:Global tropical cyclone tracks-edit2.jpg, where the high density of tracks and plots indicates that the implementation of this on a large scale is unfeasible, and that having such files as exceptions to the suggestion would undermine consistency maintained across hundreds of files.

Furthermore, yes, WP:COLOR does indeed say that "Ensure that color is not the only method used to convey important information," and the Accessibility guideline on images says that "Where possible, any charts or diagrams should have a text equivalent, or should be well-described so that users who are unable to see the image can gain some understanding of the concept." We already have an alternative to colors in the maps—it's the storm articles themselves, especially their meteorological histories which describe in detail the track and intensity of such tropical cyclones. TheAustinMan(Talk·Works) 16:19, 2 August 2014 (UTC)
Frankly, this is nonsense. For high-density maps like you mentioned, you can't even see the individual dots unless you expand the map to its highest size, and at that size, replacing unlabeled dots of color with symbols is entirely possible. It wouldn't change the look of the map at all at a thumbnail size. I said right above you, WP:COLOR is 'not about "users who are unable to see", it is about helping those that cannot see well. You have no idea what is feasible until you actually try. The fundamental nature of Wikipedia is about making information accessible... I have rarely seen so much resistance to making a change directly meant to accomplish that. -- Netoholic @ 16:37, 2 August 2014 (UTC)
I know that WP:COLOR is not only for the blind, and I never mentioned that notion at all. Frankly I still disagree with the notion that, even at its maximum 8000x4000 resolution, individually labeling every categorical dot on the map is a feasible solution. It's not. Here's a crop of the western Pacific on that map at maximum resolution. Please elaborate exactly how adding labels to each individual dot here is feasible. I've done a bit of testing myself and the size of dots makes numbers indiscernible in these situations. TheAustinMan(Talk·Works) 16:56, 2 August 2014 (UTC)
The vast majority of track maps have a single path and no more than a couple dozen dots. You are making an appeal to the most extreme example possible while ignoring the relevance of the changes to the most common ones (reductio ad absurdum). -- Netoholic @ 17:17, 2 August 2014 (UTC)
That should not be reason to ignore that that issue still exists. Climatological maps and tropical cyclone-season maps take up a considerable portion of tropical cyclone trackmaps. The current proposal presents a systemic issue that impacts not only a small minority of images, and you're also not considering that the meteorological histories of storms found in prose explains the intricate histories of these storms in full such that the images and text supplement eachother, these items are not mutually exclusive. TheAustinMan(Talk·Works) 17:27, 2 August 2014 (UTC)
Also, don't forget that storms can drift or loop. It helps when you do go to the extreme to see what the proposal would look like. ♫ Hurricanehink (talk) 17:32, 2 August 2014 (UTC)
I oppose using category 1-5 dots with circles stating the category on any maps that are for the WPAC, NIO and SWIO since the SSHWS is not official there and we shouldn't be drawing even more attention that we are using an unofficial scale for the track maps. The Aus/SPAC basins use Cat 1-5 so the maps should be converted across especially since the tracking data is in the public domain. Also i fail to see why Netoholic is trying to hold up the accessibility standards to an image even if its one we generate. Jason Rees (talk) 12:36, 3 August 2014 (UTC)
Template:Storm path already makes it clear the maps are keyed to the SSHWS. -- Netoholic @ 02:49, 4 August 2014 (UTC)
Putting on my maintainer hat, suggestions #1 and #2 will not be implemented.
  • Enough reasons have been written here by others why #1 is a bad idea, but in particular legibility concerns are important, and we already use symbol shapes to indicate the meteorological status (i.e. tropical/subtropical/extratropical) of the storm.
  • Suggestion #2 introduces internationalization issues, since the English Wikipedia is not the only project that uses these images, and having to upload separate maps for each project that uses our maps is not a productive use of anyone's time. Furthermore, introducing written text to the maps raises the possibility that we would be unable to release the maps to the public domain (one of the explicit goals of this project) due to issues with copyright protection.
  • Suggestion #3 is useful, but we again run into the font copyright issue of #2.
As an aside, I will mention that the WP:ACCESS issues you bring up can be easily solved in prose, which is something we have to do anyways (see Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Accessibility#Images, in particular point #3), so these concerns are all very overblown. Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 19:31, 4 August 2014 (UTC)
  • original version
    original version
  • accessible version
    accessible version
  • To answer Titoxd's claim #1 that this change would have "legibility concerns", I've put together a mockup of the method I suggested. You can see that at a thumbnail level, the difference is almost imperceptible, but when expanded, the accessible version becomes useful to those that have color vision impairments. I'll concede his point #2 about the on-image key/legend being a language problem, but providing distinguishing characteristics (other than color) to conform to WP:COLOR is entirely possible. Each project can then create a key/legend that is tailored to them. His claim about this "easily solved in prose" is referring to accessibility guidelines for the blind. My change request here is in accord with WP:COLOR which is about helping those people that have color vision impairments. Those people do not use browsing tools for the blind, they pretty much use standard browsers with their UIs configured for high-contrast modes. It is those people that deserve to be accommodated by using better indicators on these track maps. His comments about font copyright concerns is a complete non-starter. We aren't publishing an entire font here, we're using a few characters which we could even design ourselves if you really feel that such a thing would otherwise prevent public domain release. -- Netoholic @ 05:14, 5 August 2014 (UTC)
  • Actually, the addition of the "1" makes the Cat 1, Cat 2 and Cat 3 colors perceptively darker in my screen, which modifies the hue and reduces the contrast with the adjacent dark Blue Marble background, so the suggestion makes it worse for the vast majority of users. Also, to imply that the most effective measure that would help completely blind users is not useful for colorblind users is flat-out ridiculous; and unless you have legal training, your assessment that legal copyright concerns (which were the whole reason these maps were created, as existing copyright encumbered existing track map collections) are not an issue is reckless, and will be completely disregarded. Titoxd(?!? - cool stuff) 07:26, 5 August 2014 (UTC)
  • Like I said, any very slight differences you see can be adjusted for. Something as simple as adding 1-2px to the width of each circle will more than make up for that tiny bit of darkening. Also, the overall current color scheme is too dark for WP:CONTRAST, so a new scale will lighten it up. Color-blind readers should not have to miss out on the experience of the image... telling them to "go read the prose" is damn insulting - we can make it so they can use the charts, and WP:COLOR says we must. As far as the font, like I said, if what it takes is to free-hand draw the numbers 1 thru 5 using a brand-new, original design that you can release in the public domain, that will address all concerns about fonts. We don't even have to use numbers (though I think those are best) so long as each level is distinct without relying on color alone. -- Netoholic @ 08:13, 5 August 2014 (UTC)
  • Hello, User:Netoholic. I think the addition of the numbers in the track map will make it harder to read, and as many people have already said, the important information in the track is always written in prose so I don't see why we need to change the track. About your accessible version, what symbols would you use for subtropical storms? What about extratropical storms and remnant low/invests? Krit-tonkla talk 16:12, 8 August 2014 (UTC)
  • I don't have any specific preference on what symbols to use, I'll leave that up to what is conventional in the meteorological space. All I am pointing out is that the current maps violate the MoS - "Ensure that color is not the only method used to convey important information" - for no good reason. If these were simply track maps with no colors, this would not be a problem, but if you are going to use intensity scales for them, you can also accommodate the 8% of readers that have color vision problems. As a general suggestion, which I know people would object to vigorously, these maps should use line drawings, not satellite imagery, since the dark blue makes it even harder to discern the color differences and tend to obscure most ways of using graphical symbols on these charts (since black disappears against dark blue even for those with normal vision. -- Netoholic @ 16:53, 8 August 2014 (UTC)

@Netoholic, Netoholic, Titoxd, and TheAustinMan:
Message about this discussion was left on the Accessibility page, plus the diploma on the wall says I'm a meteorologist. So, this intrigued me.

  • To see how a colour blind person will view the images, goto http://www.color-blindness.com/coblis-color-blindness-simulator/. Download the image from Wikipedia to be tested and then you will upload it to the web site. Of the types listed on the website, Red-Blind/Protanopia, Green-Blind/Deuteranopia and Green-Weak/Deuteranomaly are the most common.
  • The colours for tropical depression and tropical storm are very similar. With the right kind of colour blindness, they look identical, thus they need to be changed.
  • Putting colour blindness aside, personally, the image is confusing. Nothing says what the colours mean. With the new media viewer, when you click on an image, you still get nothing. More than colour dots need to be on the image. At the very least, put a key on the image or do what the NWS does, put H, S, D in the dots. Also, time wise, what do the dots mean? Nowhere is that mentioned. I don't think you need to put times on the images as the NWS does, but atleast mention that the dots are space out over 12hr intervals.

Bgwhite (talk) 05:13, 15 August 2014 (UTC)

Before I get off on a tangent, I don't think it's worth changing the td and ts colors (way too time consuming). Reality is we can't satisfy everyone, and I don't think it's the end of the world if those two look identical. After all, a TD and TS are arguably fairly similar. As for your third point, that's fair and somewhat actionable, but in every TC article, there is a caption: "Map plotting the track and intensity of the storm according to the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale". Does that help resolve your third bullet point at all? YE Pacific Hurricane 05:30, 15 August 2014 (UTC)
Yellow Evan I don't know what a "TC article" is, but I really hope you didn't say, "Maybe if they are that colorblind, they shouldn't be on a computer?" That is one of bigotest remarks I've seen here in awhile. Upwards of 15% of the male population are colour blind. That is not a small percentage. Having all people view an image or read content is not nitpickness or overenforcement. I'm completely flabbergasted. Bgwhite (talk) 05:54, 15 August 2014 (UTC)
Whoops. I cut and pasted the wrong thing into the clipboard. Apologies. When I mean "TC article", I mean a tropical cyclone article. YE Pacific Hurricane 05:57, 15 August 2014 (UTC)
Anotherwords, you really did mean to say colorblind shouldn't have a computer as you had already written it out. Disgusting. There oranges and blues look the same, so that colour scale is worthless. I will no longer deal with you or your bigotry. If anyone is confused, Yellow Evan's previous edit removed his bigoted remarks. Bgwhite (talk) 06:15, 15 August 2014 (UTC)
No, I did not. I was frustrated and wrote that comment in the edit window. I cutted it out and somehow it wound up back in. YE Pacific Hurricane 06:24, 15 August 2014 (UTC)
User:Yellow Evan: "... Maybe if they are that colorblind, they shouldn't be on a computer?" - I think this reveals a lot about you (intentionally or not), and the reason you've pushed back on this change so much. Do you know, even if you aren't color blind now, that it can present itself as you get older or as a result of an accident or disease... so, if it happens to you someday, do you expect that you'll want to stop using a computer? Or would you rather try as hard as you can to adapt, and ask for assistance from others to make your experience better? -- Netoholic @ 08:29, 15 August 2014 (UTC)
Shameful... but I think the user knows so much.
Having gotten that out of the way... I'm also not entirely in favor of communicating ALL information come hell and high water in a way that is accessible. We should do things that we know work for users, that we now don't upset or degrade accessibility for others etc. Too often we pick something, apply it everywhere and then someone is "well that's annoying". Information that is there should be accessible, but can be accessible in a less detailed way (as long as the user is aware that he is missing detail). Let's be honest, we are not a Hurricane institute distributing hurricane maps. If we were, then it would be important to communicate all the information in the method as accessible as in any way possible. But for an aggregated information wiki, annotating with for instance "a color coded" map of the phases of the storm already does a lot. If we can do the circle based indicators, then that also would help. Those are reasonable requests, for as long as editors are able to make those maps. If a volunteer is not able/willing to make contributions, because we are imposing accessibility requirements however, we have to think carefully about wether that is worth it in the grand scheme of things. We will never be fully accessible to everyone, but we should always strive to be the best that we can be.
P.S. makes me wonder why there is no aria attribute to describe colorblindness problems on image elements. Might be nice, the browser could automatically apply a color filter for those users.... /me ponders... —TheDJ (talk • contribs) 09:46, 15 August 2014 (UTC)
I think I made it clear that comment (which I wrote in the edit window) was out of frustration and mean and I apologize, but let's move on. I think right now, we're pretty close to making these as accessible as we can. I think the big worked needed (and this isn't really acessible-related) is tweaking the caption below every track map. YE Pacific Hurricane 14:13, 15 August 2014 (UTC)

@Bgwhite: Before the media viewer stuff came in we did have descriptions along the [lines of this showing up on the images. Is there anyway of including that sort of stuff on the media viewer yet? Also to address YE's comment about colourblind people, i think he is seriously sorry for any offense caused and genuinely did not mean to write that comment.Jason Rees (talk) 17:19, 15 August 2014 (UTC)

“3000 < 2700”

I saw that some people generate track maps under the width at 3,000 pixels, but the quality is actually lower than maps under the width at 2,700 pixels. If you are not sure, you could compare the pixels of landmass between these two kinds of maps. I also optimise the PNG files before uploading. -- Meow 05:34, 23 September 2014 (UTC)

Handling 10-minute winds for extratropical cyclones

As the WikiProject tracks are based on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale (1-minute winds), the tracking data of 10-minute winds should be divined by 0.93 if the system is born as an entirely extratropical cyclone. This conversion is officially adopted by many agencies and only for systems at sea. -- Meow 11:38, 9 November 2014 (UTC)

Help with installation on Windows 7

Hi, it keeps saying when I run the autogen.sh && make that it can't find autoconf, automake, or gettext even though I already have those installed on my computer. Can someone please help me?

Megacane (talk) 00:30, 6 May 2016 (UTC)

It's been a while since I used the track map generator on Windows, but did you make sure to install them with Cygwin? The track map generator only will work if you are using Cygwin as your shell. — Iune(talk) 04:49, 6 May 2016 (UTC)
How do you do it with Cygwin, it keeps giving me random errors. Like for example:
  • ./autogen.sh: line 5: $'\r': command not found
  • ./autogen.sh: line 7: $'\r': command not found
  • ./autogen.sh: line 22: syntax error near unexpected token `$'\r
  • '/autogen.sh: line 22: `version_check()

Megacane (talk) 16:50, 6 May 2016 (UTC)

If autogen is giving you issues, try the manual install instructions that directly execute gcc. Titoxd(?!?) 19:51, 26 July 2016 (UTC)

Location of Hurdat2 files for Eastern North Pacific Tropical Cyclones and Season Summary Maps

Hi,

I have installed the track map generator successfully on Mac OSX but I'm unable to fund the Hurdat2 files needed for generation of maps. I was able to create a track map of a 1928 cyclone using ./track --year 1928 --id 4 in the track directory which is one of the examples given on the project page, but Hurdat2 files are needed for generation of current cyclones. The Best Track Data at http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/data/#hurdat does not have 2016 data. Where can I find the files for 2016 cyclones?

On a another note, how are season summary maps created? Are they overlaid or do the Hurdat2 files contain information on all the storms?

Thanks.
BC kringle (talk) 03:48, 6 July 2016 (UTC)

The newer storms (the ones that use the ATCF parser) use data from [2]. ATCF uses one file per storm, so in order to create a season map, you have to concatenate the storms using the --next parameter. Titoxd(?!?) 19:56, 26 July 2016 (UTC)
As an aside, how exactly are the season summary images created (with the entire basin in the image)? What options are required to include the whole the basin? — Iune(talk) 22:44, 26 July 2016 (UTC)
The way I do it is that I download all the best track files to a data/2016 sub-directory, and then do something like this. (Comments start with "#"):
./track --res 3000 --extra 1 \                              # normal settings for the image
 --input ../data/2016/bal012016.dat --format atcf --next \  # first storm
 --input ../data/2016/bal022016.dat --format atcf -next \   # second storm
 --input ../data/2016/bal032016.dat --format atcf -next \   # repeat as necessary
 --input ../data/2016/bal042016.dat --format atcf -next \
 --input ../data/2016/bal052016.dat --format atcf \         # last storm: do not add the "next" parameter
--output ../png/al-2016.png                                 # output options
Typically the --extra 1 parameter will take care of including the entire basin. Titoxd(?!?) 04:25, 5 August 2016 (UTC)

MD

Since the Joint Typhoon Warning Center introduced MD (monsoon depression) in the best track data and even the operational tracks this year, how should this project treat it? -- Meow 06:35, 4 August 2016 (UTC)

This probably should be asked at WT:WPTC. Titoxd(?!?) 04:26, 5 August 2016 (UTC)
It shouldn't really be an issue since we should generally be using RSMC data over JTWC data - but if we must deal with it then just treat it as if it were a depression since that's how we deal with them in the NIO.Jason Rees (talk) 09:21, 5 August 2016 (UTC)

Appreciation

Every time I read about a hurricane (or similar) on Wikipedia I'm impressed by the clarity, informativeness and beauty of these maps. Many thanks to all involved in this project. Beorhtwulf (talk) 12:05, 21 September 2017 (UTC)

Temporal absence

Add a Path Direction Indicator?

Please pass this suggestion along to the software developer:

Users may not be familiar with typical hurricane paths. Consider adding some indication of the time sequence.
Perhaps you could dim the connecting lines over time (white for the latest, dimming to a medium gray for the earliest).

In the meantime, consider retrofitting the software's output image with some indication of direction.

-- ໃː^Þ) 47.13.201.60 (talk) 06:42, 25 May 2019 (UTC)

My personal track map of Typhoon Faxai (2019)
For your reference, I wrote a program to produce this map from a track data for my personal use. It is common to show the category number and date/time in the map outside Wikipedia community.―― Phoenix7777 (talk) 22:52, 20 September 2019 (UTC)

Some indicator of direction would also be useful for storms that take unusual paths that may be ambiguous on the map such as Cyclone Winston or Tropical Storm Hannah (2014). TornadoLGS (talk) 19:17, 3 October 2019 (UTC)

CMA/HKO BT?

So, recently I asked User:Meow that "can I use HKO/CMA estimates?" because IBTrACS lists HKO and CMA with their estimates. So, what is your opinion over this? @Supportstorm: @Titoxd: @Cyclonebiskit: Regards, 👦 07:37, 16 January 2020 (UTC)

I would imagine that they could be used for CMA/HKO only storms, but as they aren't the RSMC for the Western Pacific I think it'd be better to use JMA data for the extratropical low/remnant low stages. — Iunetalk 16:46, 16 January 2020 (UTC)
Then how about when CMA and/or HKO upgrades a system a TD while the JMA and JTWC doesn't upgrade the system until later? Regards, 👦 14:30, 17 January 2020 (UTC)
@Iune: Maybe we can use them because IBTRACS lists their storm type as TS (tropical) when the CMA and/or HKO monitors the storm (for example, 1998 typhoon season's TD 09W is being tracked by CMA earlier than JTWC's BT and the IBTRACS considers them as TS). Regards, 👦 02:03, 19 January 2020 (UTC)
My personal preference is to only use JMA/JTWC data for storms that they monitored (i.e. JTWC data as a starting point by convention for consistency with other basins and JMA data for any extratropical/remnant low/etc. stages), and then data from other warning centers like the CMA or HKO for systems that only they monitored, though others may have different thoughts on the topic. — Iunetalk 03:53, 20 January 2020 (UTC)
I think we need more respondents. But I don't know how because only Supportstorm and @FleurDeOdile: are the only ones that I seen to use IBTrACS data. - 👦 07:39, 20 January 2020 (UTC)
Iune I was going to bring up this with the project. I believe that the way IBTrACS is being used for track building is not consistent. Your idea of JTWC and RSMC data for post-tropical stage would be a better solution. Some tracks may need more subjective determination of when to transition between sources, but it will be more consistent overall. Supportstorm (talk) 19:35, 20 January 2020 (UTC)
Sometimes I wonder if we shouldnt be using RSMC data primarily for these track maps, since they seem to track them for longer .Jason Rees (talk) 22:42, 20 January 2020 (UTC)
So, maybe we can use any source (for example CMA/HKO data when the upgrade the system as a TD) and follow RSMC / JTWC data for consistency? Regards, 👦 11:23, 22 January 2020 (UTC)
What is the final decision? Regards, 👦 05:08, 24 January 2020 (UTC)

No IBTrACS

Now, @Supportstorm: recently changed tracks from IBTrACS to JMA/JTWC and OPC data, although it had a consensus that we can use IBTrACS data. My mind is (partially) blowing up from the situation, so what's your take, @Meow: @Jason Rees: @Iune:? - Regards, 👦 11:05, 6 March 2020 (UTC)

@Supportstorm: informed me privately a couple of weeks ago that he prefers to use JMA/JTWC as well as OPC data for track maps rather than IBTRACS since they merge the tracks. I have no preference either way.Jason Rees (talk) 23:01, 6 March 2020 (UTC)
I found some users, including myself, using IBTrACS to create tracks that were SYNTH with the available data. I went back and corrected a good chuck of the offending maps I created. Also only a few were leaving the map data in the codebox so it was difficult to verify which source was being used. I've been adding source tags to most of the data I've posted since about 2015 for this reason and highly encourage other track creators to do the same. Using JTWC as the primary data source, extending it with RSMC data is a good compromise so that tracks are consistent and everyone is on the same page. Also most users are going to look at JTWC or RSMC as a sources for data and it looks good for tracks to reflect the data we push in the articles. OPC data is valid for areas within their METAREA and is used operationally in the Atlantic or when an extra-tropical system moves out of the JMA's AOR. It's fine to use IBTrACS to pull agency data, but the merged track I don't think should be used. There's been inconsistencies with how they merge or favor data in the past. Supportstorm (talk) 07:02, 7 March 2020 (UTC)
@Supportstorm: @Jason Rees: So I can put it as 'we can use IBTrACS but we can't use their merged track because they have a past that there's been inconsistencies on how they merge or favor data'. I comprehend that as such.
But Supportstorm, you can only use and/or donate OPC tracks on codeboxes of such storms, so it's very difficult to use OPC data when we know that you manually do them and we don't know the secret. That's why I reached to you that 'can you put two weather charts with borders on kml format' because I'm gonna edit the contents of the format. As of now, you are not replied any link yet to the weather charts.
Also, I'm one of the users that doesn't leave whose agency track that were used, so I'm sorry about that. I'm currently recompiling tracks of JTWC and JMA data from 1945 to present, so thanks for the clarification.
Regards, 👦 13:25, 9 March 2020 (UTC)
I just wanna suggest that every user of the track generator should have a copy of Supportstorm's modified world map on the bg folder. The map should be used for storms near the dateline, equators, etc. and should not be used on the Atlantic because of a line near Africa. Maybe the extent of the map summary of the Atlantic. Regards, 👦 13:28, 9 March 2020 (UTC)

Subtropical colors

@Hurricane Noah: came to my Discord messages today and asked first, if I had the trackmaker (response was yes) and if I could change some dot colors (perhaps yes). I was then brought with the request to enact the following procedure:

Make "some dots" colored this color (presumably SD) and this color (presumably SS)— and to make them subtropical. I had some difficulty trying to work this out in coding the track.c file to make it happen (asked in WPTC discord in #general with no response to date.)

Soon in the WPTC discord, in #irc (where the IRC and Discord users intercommunicate), Noah mentioned suggesting new subtrop colors. I asked him his WP username so I could mention the colors and now we're here.

So...two things.

First, how would I code in the new colors? Currently, this is my modified "category define" part of track.c as-is: 

/* Purely by windspeed. */
 int winds[] = {
   0,
   34, 
   0 && (storm->maxtype == SUBTROPICAL), /*Subtropical.*/
   34 && (storm->maxtype == SUBTROPICAL), /*Subtropical.*/
   64, 
   83,
   96,
   114,
   136
 };

Secondly, I propose myself two subtropical colors I've used in the past that were selected by a (i'm pretty sure) non-WP user:

SD and SS.

Thoughts for this? ~ AC5230 talk 17:11, 23 April 2020 (UTC), amended 17:14 UTC.

Please help?

According to other historical sources, a typhoon that originates to the south of Japan islands on 15-Jan-1960, passed by Iturup on 17-Jan (wind speeds at that time approached 12 on Beaufort scale). By 21-Jan the winds declined to 6-7 on [Beaufort scale. On 22-Jan, a different typhoon originating from the middle of Japan islands passed in the vicinity.

Can you please help me identifying those two (I need their names and/or unique identifiers), and find the data about their tracks? I tried doing my research, but I admit it's sorta beyond my depth, and hopefully you guys can help me out. -- Wesha (talk) 23:15, 27 April 2020 (UTC)

  • Have you got your months right as you don't really see typhoons impacting Japan in January and the first tropical depression that year (Ivy) formed around January 30.Jason Rees (talk) 23:43, 27 April 2020 (UTC)
    • I am fairly certain. The story is Self-propelled barge T-36 and there are WAY more sources in Russian that I didn't bother copying to en-Wiki (go see the ruwiki page). For US, it was a minute occurrence, but in the USSR it was a really big deal. I'm not certain it was specifically a typhoon, but then again, I highly doubt that 12-level winds happen out of nowhere by themselves. -- Wesha (talk) 23:58, 27 April 2020 (UTC)
      • Ok I had a look at that page and the words hurricane-force winds jumped out at me and suggests that it isn't a tropical cyclone/typhoon you are after but an extratropical cyclone which are not always designated/named in the same way as typhoons. Just to be sure on this, I pulled up a couple of surface pressure charts that were prepared by the JMA and showed them to a couple of editors who agreed that it was extratropical.Jason Rees (talk) 00:19, 28 April 2020 (UTC)
  • @Wesha: while not a typhoon in the meteorological sense, there was indeed a storm that moved off Japan and the Kuril Islands during those times you mentioned. A track of this storm appears on page 111 of this edition of the Mariners Weather Log (note the curved track off Japan with 16 and 17 marked, indicating the dates). The same storm appears to have been quite deadly in Japan, with at least 10 dead (I did come across a paper reporting over a hundred deaths via the Associated Press). —TheAustinMan(Talk ⬩ Edits) 01:27, 28 April 2020 (UTC)
    • Gyus, you are totally amazing. <3 I will pass these to our graphic artists and we'll see where we can get from there. -- Wesha (talk) 01:49, 28 April 2020 (UTC)
    • So do those storms get some sort of identifiers, like "1960-#512" or not really? I mean, if I wanted to say that things happened during a particular one and not the other, how would I go about it? -- Wesha (talk) 02:00, 28 April 2020 (UTC)
      • Unlike tropical systems, which have a long history of formal designations, these sorts of blizzards and "non-tropical" storms don't really get any sort of standard names (unless someone happens to be familiar with such a practice in Russia/Japan). If you are doing personal research on the storms, the charts that Jason Rees provided are going to be your best tools for assessing what storms were present and when (though due to original research, this sort of research probably wouldn't satisfy Wikipedia's standards). I'm not too familiar with the weather agencies of that area, but I do know the US has some maps of the Northern Hemisphere as well at this link. —TheAustinMan(Talk ⬩ Edits) 02:35, 28 April 2020 (UTC)

Also: I know this is not the right forum to ask but maybe you'll be able to nudge me in the right direction: sometime between 10-Mar-1960 and 14-Mar-1960, USS Kearsarge stopped at Honolulu. Any idea where I can find the exact date? -- Wesha (talk) 17:59, 28 April 2020 (UTC)

@Wesha: News reporting suggests that the Kearsarge picked up the men of the T-36 at 6 p.m. HST on March 6 approximately 890 mi (1,430 km) WNW of Midway Island, and after that the carrier took a direct trip to San Francisco and arrived there on March 15. I did not see any direct reporting that suggested that the ship stopped at Honolulu, but it appears to have done so on March 10. WikiProject Ships may be more knowledgeable about this aspect of your question. —TheAustinMan(Talk ⬩ Edits) 20:30, 28 April 2020 (UTC)
Thank you! I have Soviet newspaper Pravda dated March 15th 1960 with article which explicitly says that "at this moment Kearsarge is traveling from Honololu to SF", which means it has left Honolulu not later than on 14th, given the length of newscycle. And obviously it has visited Honolulu after it saved the four. Thank you for response, I'll ask there. -- Wesha (talk) 20:49, 28 April 2020 (UTC)
@Wesha: Looking online, it seems that the US National Archives is in the process of digitizing its deck logs for various warships (which began last August). Unfortunately, while USS Kearsage is listed here, it doesn't seem that the 1960 logs have been digitized yet (so far, the logs for 1961-1969 have been digitized). Perhaps you might be able to contact someone at the National Archives? (I suspect WikiProject Ships might have more help on this matter). — Iunetalk 21:24, 28 April 2020 (UTC)

HELP

@Titoxd: @Iune: My system is Ubuntu 16.04. I have just updated my track map generator and the "--extra" option wasn't working when I was creating a map for Amanda, which I will throw away. Any thoughts about this error? Regards, 👦 09:08, 10 June 2020 (UTC)

When I give the option, it always says:
Segmentation fault (core dumped)
Regards, 👦 09:17, 10 June 2020 (UTC)
Pinging @Meow: as one of contributors. I just want the old one back, with a correct --extra option! Regards, 👦 08:43, 17 June 2020 (UTC)
Have you tried to re-download? I rebuilt earlier this year and I have not had problems like that. 🐱💬 09:37, 17 June 2020 (UTC)
@Meow: Just re-downloaded it. It's still the same, not working. Regards, 👦 07:16, 24 June 2020 (UTC)
I really don’t know what is going on. 🐱💬 07:42, 24 June 2020 (UTC)
@Meow: This is the error I videoed. Regards, 👦 08:58, 24 June 2020 (UTC)
Have you tried other files or exporting to somewhere else? 🐱💬 13:38, 24 June 2020 (UTC)
@Meow: Just upgraded to 18.04, and it's now working well. Maybe the generator is new to my old 16.04, lolol. By the way, how @Supportstorm: create those unknown colors? I want to know that. Regards, 👦 07:55, 26 June 2020 (UTC)

The Epsilon Error

The track map for the current Hurricane Epsilon says it's a Category 3, when in reality it's a Category 2. Can someone fix this bug? CyclonicStormYutu (talk) 19:22, 21 October 2020 (UTC)

Policy for track file descriptions

There is weak consensus (due to low participation) in support of policy. However, as few editors participated in this discussion so editors that disagree are highly encouraged to propery open an RfC below using the proper template rather than contesting the closure.Santacruz ⁂ Please tag me! 09:24, 26 November 2021 (UTC)

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

@Titoxd, Cyclonebiskit, Iune, Keith Edkins, Meow, Krit-tonkla, Master0Garfield, FleurDeOdile, Jasper Deng, Nino Marakot, JavaHurricane, AveryTheComrade, and Chlod:
Hey everyone, I want to discuss deploying a policy about what goes in track file descriptions. There have been a few complaints about users adding extra unnecessary commentary or nonsense messages when uploading new files. It would be beneficial if we could make a standard for what goes in the description. Most uploaders already follow the proposed policies, but it would be nice if we had a consensus.

  1. When uploading an updated operational version of the map include month/day and UTC time of the most recent track data, and, optionally in parentheses, other track map specific notes. Example: 11/22 18Z (Final operational update)
  2. When uploading a best track map include the name of the agency the BT comes from. Examples: NHC TCR update, JTWC BT update

Some exemptions may include uploading a map at a higher resolution or basemap quality. Just stating what changes you are making to the map quality is fine. Following these policies will help others keep track of map versions and other pertinent changes. Feel free to leave comments or suggest other policies. Supportstorm (talk) 19:37, 22 November 2020 (UTC)

  • Support This is probably a good policy to have and I'm surprised it hasn't come up in the past 14 years. AveryTheComrade (talk) 19:48, 22 November 2020 (UTC)
  • Strong oppose Anyone can reasonably infer what time I'm updating for, or what agency I'm using. This is simply unneeded. If you're unwilling to make basic inferences, you aren't giving the process due diligence.--Jasper Deng (talk) 20:27, 22 November 2020 (UTC)
  • Strong support This will definitely be helpful to those who are just new to WPTC, or to those who aren't WPTC members who happened to stumble upon or were actively looking for the track images, with absolutely no context of where it's from, how it's made, or when it's updated. I find context clues to be extremely useful, especially as not all of us are meteorologists by profession, so this would definitely be useful to the new members. Cewbot already does this with its forecast tracks and product uploads, I personally do it for PAGASA signals, a large majority of the track updaters already do this, and if anything, it helps standardize version updates to make them easier to process, so there's absolutely no reason why not to make it into a policy. Chlod (say hi!) 00:58, 23 November 2020 (UTC)
The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

Map projected Blue Marble

I want to do a little fiddling around with some ideas related to the color RfC. I downloaded the generator so I could import Blue Marble into ArcMap, but it does not seem to have any coordinate system. Does the track map generator do its coordinates differently? Is there a coordinate system I could use, or would I have to georeference the raster manually? I was told Chlod might know about this. TornadoLGS (talk) 19:09, 31 May 2022 (UTC)

@TornadoLGS: File:Blue Marble 2002.png uses the Mercator projection to transform the spherical shape of the Earth onto a flat 2D rectangle. The coordinate 90°N 180°W / 90°N 180°W / 90; -180 is pixel (0, 0) on the map, and 90°S 180°E / 90°S 180°E / -90; 180 pertains to the most bottom-left pixel which is, in this case, (43200, 21600). Methods of calculating the respective coordinate for each point to and from the projection can be easily found online.
I'd suggest that you just use the color override trick I mentioned before than use ArcMap for this. Not only will you save time as you no longer have to reinvent the entire map-making process through ArcMap, but you'll also be using the same software we already use to generate maps (which avoids inconsistencies with dot size, line shape, etc.). Chlod (say hi!) 12:22, 1 June 2022 (UTC)
@Chlod: I took a short semi-wiki-break since I got tired of the whole debate. I was actually going to experiment with a few other things, aside from simple color changes. Also the map appears to be a plate carrée projection, as the project page says. I have thought of getting the generator, but I don't know how to check if I have the right prerequisites on my computer. TornadoLGS (talk) 18:48, 2 June 2022 (UTC)

Suffix of identifiers for the South-West Indian Ocean

From BUFR files released by the Météo-France Réunion (MFR), the suffix of identifiers is confirmed to be S (i.g. 01S for Ashley). All future unnamed systems in this basin should follow the suit.  🐱💬 03:26, 28 September 2022 (UTC)

It may bring confusion with JTWC's designations. Use MFR [number] [year] path.png instead. 🐱💬 13:35, 27 March 2023 (UTC)
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