**MPE Editor**

**User's Guide**

**June 26, 2006**

**Build 7.1**

**NWS Office of Hydrologic Development**

![](media/image1.png){width="6.488194444444445in"
height="5.189583333333333in"}

**TABLE OF CONT**ENTS

[1.0 Introduction 1](#introduction)

[2.0 New Features in MPE Editor 2](#new-features-in-mpe-editor)

[2.1 Reorganized Main Menubar Options
2](#reorganized-main-menubar-options)

[2.2 P3 Local Bias Corrected Radar Mosaic
2](#p3-local-bias-corrected-radar-mosaic)

[2.3 Enhanced Polygon Editing Tools 3](#enhanced-polygon-editing-tools)

[2.4 Updated Choose Hour Window 3](#updated-choose-hour-window)

[2.5 Split Screen View Option 3](#split-screen-view-option)

[2.6 User Configurable Overlays 4](#user-configurable-overlays)

[2.7 Choice of Base Radar Mosaic 4](#choice-of-base-radar-mosaic)

[3.0 The MPE Editor Graphical User Interface
4](#the-mpe-editor-graphical-user-interface)

[3.1 The Main Window 4](#the-main-window)

[3.2 The Main Menubar 4](#the-main-menubar)

[3.2.1 File Menu Options 5](#file-menu-options)

[3.2.1.1 Save as Gif 6](#save-as-gif)

[3.2.1.2 Print Image 6](#print-image)

[3.2.1.3 Print Reverse Image 6](#print-reverse-image)

[3.2.1.4 Close 6](#close)

[3.2.2 Tools Menu Options 6](#tools-menu-options)

[3.2.2.1 Areal Zoom 7](#areal-zoom)

[3.2.2.2 Point Zoom 7](#point-zoom)

[3.2.2.3 Pan 7](#pan)

[3.2.2.4 Recenter 7](#recenter)

[3.2.2.5 Tool Bar 7](#tool-bar)

[3.2.2.6 Set Font 8](#set-font)

[3.2.2.7 Set Colors 8](#set-colors)

[3.2.2.8 View 10](#view)

[3.2.2.9 Clear Data 11](#clear-data)

[3.2.3 Projections Menu Options 11](#projections-menu-options)

[3.2.4 Overlays Menu Options 12](#overlays-menu-options)

[3.2.5 MPEcontrol Menu Options 14](#mpecontrol-menu-options)

[3.2.5.1 Next Hour Option 14](#next-hour-option)

[3.2.5.2 Previous Hour Option 15](#previous-hour-option)

[3.2.5.3 Choose Hour Option \... 16](#choose-hour-option-...)

[3.2.5.4 Save Best Estimate Top Option
17](#save-best-estimate-top-option)

[3.2.5.5 Save Best Estimate Bottom Option
18](#save-best-estimate-bottom-option)

[3.2.5.6 Regenerate Hour Fields (formerly Rerun Fieldgen\...)
18](#regenerate-hour-fields-formerly-rerun-fieldgen...)

[3.2.6 PrecipFields Menu Options 18](#precipfields-menu-options)

[3.2.6.1 Radar Mosaic Option 19](#radar-mosaic-option)

[3.2.6.2 Average Radar Mosaic Option 20](#average-radar-mosaic-option)

[3.2.6.3 Max Radar Mosaic Option 20](#max-radar-mosaic-option)

[3.2.6.4 Field Bias Radar Mosaic Option
20](#field-bias-radar-mosaic-option)

[3.2.6.5 Local Bias Radar Mosaic Option
21](#local-bias-radar-mosaic-option)

[3.2.6.6 Gage Only Analysis Option 21](#gage-only-analysis-option)

[3.2.6.7 Satellite Precip Option 21](#satellite-precip-option)

[3.2.6.8 Local Bias Satellite Precip Option
22](#local-bias-satellite-precip-option)

[3.2.6.9 Multisensor Mosaic Option 22](#multisensor-mosaic-option)

[3.2.6.10 Local Bias Multisensor Mosaic
22](#local-bias-multisensor-mosaic)

[3.2.6.11 Triangulated Local Bias Mosaic
23](#triangulated-local-bias-mosaic)

[3.2.6.12 Best Estimate QPE Option 23](#best-estimate-qpe-option)

[3.2.7 BaseFields Menu Options 23](#basefields-menu-options)

[3.2.7.1 Local Span Option 23](#local-span-option)

[3.2.7.2 Local Bias Option 23](#local-bias-option)

[3.2.7.3 Height Field Option 24](#height-field-option)

[3.2.7.4 Radar Coverage Field 24](#radar-coverage-field)

[3.2.7.5 Gage Triangles 24](#gage-triangles)

[3.2.8 Gages Menu Options 25](#gages-menu-options)

[3.2.8.1 QC Precipitation 25](#qc-precipitation)

[3.2.8.2 QC Temperatures 25](#qc-temperatures)

[3.2.8.3 QC Freezing Level 25](#qc-freezing-level)

[3.2.8.4 Save Level 2 Data 25](#save-level-2-data)

[3.2.8.5 Add Pseudo Gage 25](#add-pseudo-gage)

[3.2.8.6 Gage Table \... 26](#gage-table-...)

[3.2.8.7 Show Missing Gages 27](#show-missing-gages)

[3.2.8.8 Gage Color 27](#gage-color)

[3.2.8.8.1 Solid Color 28](#solid-color)

[3.2.8.8.2 Contrast Color 28](#contrast-color)

[3.2.8.8.3 Color By QC 28](#color-by-qc)

[3.2.8.8.4 Color By Value 28](#color-by-value)

[3.2.8.9 Display 7 x 7 28](#display-7-x-7)

[3.2.8.10 Show Gage Identifiers 29](#show-gage-identifiers)

[3.2.8.11 Show Gage Values 29](#show-gage-values)

[3.2.9 Polygons Menu Options 30](#polygons-menu-options)

[3.2.9.1 Draw Polygons 30](#draw-polygons)

[3.2.9.2 Delete Polygons 32](#delete-polygons)

[3.2.10 Climo Menu Options 34](#climo-menu-options)

[3.2.10.1 Monthly Prism Precip 34](#monthly-prism-precip)

[3.2.10.2 Monthly Prism Max Temp 34](#monthly-prism-max-temp)

[3.2.10.3 Monthly Prism Min Temp 34](#monthly-prism-min-temp)

[3.2.11 Misc Menu Options 34](#misc-menu-options)

[3.2.11.1 Display Bias Table 35](#display-bias-table)

[3.2.11.2 Review Hourly Radar \... 36](#review-hourly-radar-...)

[3.2.11.3 Time Lapse Submenu 38](#time-lapse-submenu)

[3.2.11.4 Multi-Hour QPE 39](#multi-hour-qpe)

[3.2.12 40](#section-1)

[3.2.13 Help Menu Options 40](#help-menu-options)

[4.0 Mouse Controls and Hot Keys 41](#mouse-controls-and-hot-keys)

[4.1 Exceptions to Mouse Functionality
41](#exceptions-to-mouse-functionality)

[4.2 Pop Up Menu Options 43](#pop-up-menu-options)

[4.3 Hot Keys 43](#hot-keys)

TABLES

[Table 4- 1 MPE Editor Mouse Functionality
41](#__RefHeading___Toc139087622)

[Table 4- 2 Pop up Menu Options 42](#__RefHeading___Toc139087623)

[Table 4- 3 MPE Editor Hot Keys 43](#table-4--mpe-editor-hot-keys)

**FIGURES**

[Figure 3- 1 File Menu Options 6](#__RefHeading___Toc139087625)

[Figure 3- 2 Tools Menu Options 7](#__RefHeading___Toc139087626)

[Figure 3- 3 Set Font Menu Options 8](#__RefHeading___Toc139087627)

[Figure 3- 4 Color Thresholds Window 8](#__RefHeading___Toc139087628)

[Figure 3- 5 The View Menu Options 10](#__RefHeading___Toc139087629)

[Figure 3- 6 Projections Menu Options 12](#__RefHeading___Toc139087630)

[Figure 3- 7 Overlays Menu Options 13](#__RefHeading___Toc139087631)

[Figure 3- 8 Streams and Lakes Submenu 13](#__RefHeading___Toc139087632)

[Figure 3- 9 Highways/Roads Submenu 14](#__RefHeading___Toc139087633)

[Figure 3- 10 MPEcontrol Menu Options 14](#__RefHeading___Toc139087634)

[Figure 3- 11 The Choose Data Period Window
16](#__RefHeading___Toc139087635)

[Figure 3- 12 The PrecipFields Menu 19](#__RefHeading___Toc139087636)

[Figure 3- 13 BaseFields Menu Options 23](#__RefHeading___Toc139087637)

[Figure 3- 14 Gages Menu Options 25](#__RefHeading___Toc139087638)

[Figure 3- 15 The Show Missing Gages Submenu
27](#__RefHeading___Toc139087639)

[Figure 3- 16 The Gage Color Submenu 28](#__RefHeading___Toc139087640)

[Figure 3- 17 Polygons Menu Options 30](#__RefHeading___Toc139087641)

[Figure 3- 18 The Edit Precipitation Window
32](#__RefHeading___Toc139087642)

[Figure 3- 19 The Delete Polygons Window
33](#__RefHeading___Toc139087643)

[Figure 3- 20 The Climo menu 34](#__RefHeading___Toc139087644)

[Figure 3- 21 The Misc Menu 35](#__RefHeading___Toc139087645)

[Figure 3- 22 The Radar Site 36](#__RefHeading___Toc139087646)

[Figure 3- 23 Single Radar Site Window 37](#__RefHeading___Toc139087647)

[Figure 3- 24 The Time Lapse Menu 38](#__RefHeading___Toc139087648)

[Figure 3- 25 The Multi-Hour Precipitation Accumulation window
39](#__RefHeading___Toc139087649)

[Figure 3- 26 Help Menu Options 40](#__RefHeading___Toc139087650)

[Figure 3- 27 Popup Menu options 43](#__RefHeading___Toc139087653)

# Introduction {#introduction .hmap_mpe_header1}

For AWIPS Release 7.1, the Hydroview/MPE application has been split into
two separate applications, **Hydroview** and **MPE Editor**. This has
been done in preparation for the integration of new gage quality control
tools into MPE Editor from the Western Region Developed Mountain Mapper
program. In a future AWIPS release, there are also plans to integrate
many of Hydroview's tools into D2D; The separation of Hydroview from MPE
is an intermediate step towards this goal.

MPE Editor's focus is on areal estimations of rainfall amounts based on
both remotely sensed data (radar, satellite) and "ground truth"
observations (rain gages). It creates hourly, gridded, multi-sensor
precipitation estimates on a 4-km Hydrologic Rainfall Analysis Project
(HRAP) grid. The primary inputs to MPE are the gridded Digital
Precipitation Array (DPA) products - which provide radar estimates on a
4-km grid - and precipitation gage data. The main steps involved in
creating the multi-sensor estimate include determining a mean field bias
adjustment for each available radar, creating a multi-radar mosaic, and
merging the mosaic with precipitation gage observations. One of the
important features of MPE Editor is the ability to edit the gridded data
fields as well as the point gage observations. In the process of
performing these operations, several types of precipitation grids are
generated, with one of these designated as the best grid. At RFCs, this
resulting grid is then used to produce MAPX time series for input into
NWSRFS. At WFOs, this resulting grid is used as input to the
SiteSpecific Headwater Model.

This document will describe the MPE Editor application. It starts by
describing enhancements and new features in Section 2. Then, the entire
application, including all of its tools will be the subject of Section
3. If you are already familiar with MPE Editor, then Section 2 will
probably be of the most interest to you. However, if you are new to this
application, then both Sections 2 and 3 will provide you with insight
into how MPE Editor operates. Finally, in section 4 the mouse and hot
key controls are discussed.

# New Features in MPE Editor {#new-features-in-mpe-editor .hmap_mpe_header1}

The creation of MPE Editor has resulted in a reorganization of menu
options. Menu options have been placed into logical groupings which
emphasize the display of MPE fields and mosaics and the data editing
tools. This reorganization is also preparation for the addition of the
Mountain Mapper DailyQC gage editing tools. New MPE Editor features in
AWIPS Release 7.1 include the following:

# Reorganized Main Menubar Options {#reorganized-main-menubar-options .hmap_mpe_header2}

#  {#section .hmap_mpe_header2 .unnumbered}

The Hydroview Live Data menu, Reference Data menu and Product menu along
with their

options are not available in the MPE Editor application. The MPEfields
menu has also been removed. Its options have been divided among two new
menus, PrecipFields and BaseFields. The PrecipFields menu contains the
Radar, Gage, Satellite, and Multi-sensor fields and mosaics. The
BaseFields menu contains the fields which support the Radar, Gage,
Satellite, and Multi-sensor fields and mosaics.

A new Gages menu has been created to contain each of the gage editing
tools and gage display options. A new Polygons menu has been created to
contain the options related to the edit polygons tool. A new Climo menu
has been created to contain the Monthly Average Precipitation Prism
field and the Monthly Average Maximum and Minimum Temperature fields
which are a component of the DailyQC gage QC tools.

A new Misc menu has been created to contain the Display Bias Table,
Review Hourly Radar, Time Lapse, and Multi-Hour QPE options.

Several options are grayed out on the MPE Editor menus. These are
options which pertain the DailyQC gage QC tools and will not be
available until AWIPS Release 7.2.

# P3 Local Bias Corrected Radar Mosaic {#p3-local-bias-corrected-radar-mosaic .hmap_mpe_header2}

The AWIPS Release 7.1 version of MPE Editor includes a new local bias
corrected radar mosaic field. The algorithm used to create this field
has been adapted from the P3 Application developed and maintained by the
Arkansas-Red Basin River Forecast Center (ABRFC) in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Like the Local Bias Corrected Radar Mosaic, this product also uses gage
observations to remove local biases in mosaics of radar-estimated
precipitation. Unlike the Local Bias Radar Mosaic, the P3 Local Bias
Corrected Radar Mosaic uses the gage observations to create a triangular
irregular network (TIN). This TIN is then used to distance-weight the
influence these gage values have on the corresponding radar mosaic.
Pseudo gages can be added or existing gage values may be edited to
missing to change the orientation of the TIN and the appearance of the
resulting P3 Local Bias Mosaic.

# Enhanced Polygon Editing Tools {#enhanced-polygon-editing-tools .hmap_mpe_header2}

Several enhancements have been made to the MPE Editor polygon editing
tools in AWIPS Release 7.1. These include:

-   Edit polygons drawn on a base MPE field or mosaic are now applied
    before the field is used in a derived MPE field or mosaic. For
    example, if an edit polygon has been drawn on the radar mosaic, the
    polygon is applied to the radar mosaic before the radar mosaic is
    used in the creation of the multi-sensor mosaic. This allows
    anomalous propagation (AP) or other radar-based problems such as
    bright banding or hail cores to be eliminated before being
    introduced into the multi-sensor analysis algorithm.

-   There is now no limit to the number of vertices that may be drawn in
    an edit polygon. In previous AWIPS releases, an edit polygon could
    only have up to 19 points.

-   Polygon edits are now saved to a disk file. This ensures that
    polygon edits are not lost when changing the analysis hour or
    switching between products. In previous AWIPS Releases the user
    would have to save a field with polygon edits as the Best Estimate
    QPE before displaying a different MPE product or changing hours.

-   Edit polygons can now be selectively deleted. The Delete Polygons
    utility window displays a list all of the polygons drawn on a given
    MPE field or mosaic for a given time. The user may select polygons
    from this list to delete. The user may also delete all polygons
    drawn on the MPE product.

# Updated Choose Hour Window {#updated-choose-hour-window .hmap_mpe_header2}

In MPE Editor, the choose hour window has been replaced with the Choose
Data Period window. This window serves the purpose of initializing the
date for both the MPE and DailyQC portions of MPE Editor. The DailyQC
Gage QC tools are not available in AWIPS Release 7.1. So only the
portion of the Choose Data Period window which applies to MPE can be
used.

As soon as the MPE Editor map viewer opens, the Choose Data Period
window opens. This gives the user the option to immediately display MPE
data without having to navigate to the Choose Data Period window through
the MPEcontrol menu.

# Split Screen View Option {#split-screen-view-option .hmap_mpe_header2}

MPE Editor now offers the option to display two MPE fields or mosaics at
once. This is done by splitting the display in half and displaying one
field in the top half of the display and one field in the bottom half of
the display. The option to switch between a full and split screen
display is available on the View submenu on the Tools menu.

# User Configurable Overlays  {#user-configurable-overlays .hmap_mpe_header2}

Up to 20 user-defined overlays may now be added to the MPE Editor
Overlays menu. This is done by adding new records to the MPE Editor
Overlay configuration file. The user-defined overlays must be shapefiles
or bcd files. More information about adding user-defined overlays can be
found in the MPE Editor Implementation Document.

# Choice of Base Radar Mosaic {#choice-of-base-radar-mosaic .hmap_mpe_header2}

Starting in AWIPS Release 7.1, the user is given the option to choose
which of the three radar mosaics - Radar Mosaic, Average Radar Mosaic,
or Max Radar Mosaic - to use as the base radar mosaic for the other MPE
precipitation fields and mosaics. This is controlled by the
mpe_base_radar_mosaic token. The setting of this token is described in
the MPE Editor Implementation Guide.

# The MPE Editor Graphical User Interface {#the-mpe-editor-graphical-user-interface .hmap_mpe_header1}

This section of the document describes in greater detail all of the
various utilities available through the menubar displayed across the top
of the MPE Editor main window. It then describes the mouse-controls in
greater detail.

# The Main Window {#the-main-window .hmap_mpe_header2}

The Main window is the first window which appears when the application
is opened, and it is the primary controlling window for the MPE Editor
process. This simple window consists of a main menubar across the top
and a large display area. The user has extensive control over what is
shown in the display area. The user can set which overlays are shown in
the application by selecting the various overlay options under the
Overlays menu. Also, the user has the ability to modify the initial
overlays displayed by editing the overlay configuration file. This is
described in more detail in the accompanying ***MPE Editor
Implementation Document***. Note that MPE data are not shown when MPE
Editor is started.

# The Main Menubar {#the-main-menubar .hmap_mpe_header2}

The menubar which spans across the top portion of the MPE Editor viewer
shows the following menu headings, listed from left to right: **File,
Tools, Projections, Overlays, MPEcontrol, PrecipFields, BaseFields,
Gages, Polygons, Climo, Misc,** and **Help**. Utilities are logically
grouped by function under these menu headings. Each of these "drop down"
menus is described in detail below. Note that each of these menus can be
"torn-off". This is done by clicking on the perforation across the top
of the menu.

# File Menu Options {#file-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

The File sub‑menu has the following available options: **Save as Gif,
Print Image, Print Reverse Image, Close** (Figure 3- ).

# Save as Gif ![](media/image2.png){width="1.7534722222222223in" height="1.85in"} {#save-as-gif .hmap_mpe_header4}

This displays a popup window which allows the user to screen capture the
current MPE Editor display and save it as a gif-formatted file. The user
must make certain that the filename chosen to save the GIF image has the
extension "\*.gif". If it does not, an error will result.

# Print Image {#print-image .hmap_mpe_header4}

This option will perform a screen capture of the current MPE Editor
display and output the resulting image to the printer. Currently, color
printing is not supported. In order to print an image to a specific
printer, the user must take care to properly set the following tokens:

**whfs_printcommand_LX -** This token must be set to contain the full
print command including any non-default user desired printer
destinations. For example, to print the image out to lp2, the
whfs_printcommand_LX token should be set to "**lp -dlp2\"**. This token
defaults to value "**lp"**.

# Print Reverse Image {#print-reverse-image .hmap_mpe_header4}

This option will perform a screen capture of the current MPE Editor
display and output the resulting image in reverse video to the printer.
Currently, color printing is not supported. In order to print an image
to a specific printer, the user must take care to properly set the
tokens outlined in the section above entitled **Print Image**.

# Close {#close .hmap_mpe_header4}

This option will close the application.

# Tools Menu Options {#tools-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

The choices available on the Tools sub‑menu are **Areal Zoom, Point
Zoom**, **Pan**, **Recenter**, **Tool Bar, Set Font, Set Colors, View,**
and **Clear Data** (see Figure 3- ). The Restore Initial and Find
Station options are not available in AWIPS Release 7.1.

# Areal Zoom ![](media/image3.png){width="1.9034722222222222in" height="2.4715277777777778in"} {#areal-zoom .hmap_mpe_header4}

Areal Zoom and its associated hot key combination \<Ctrl+Z\> allow the
Hydroview/MPE display to be zoomed into and out of an area bounded by a
zoom rectangle. They also allow the MPE Editor map to be returned to its
prior state after a zoom, pan or recenter operation.

The zoom rectangle is drawn by holding down the left mouse button and
dragging the mouse. Once the rectangle is the desired size the left
mouse button may be released. By selecting Areal Zoom or Ctrl+Z the MPE
Editor map display will zoom into the area inside the rectangle.
Selecting Areal Zoom or Ctrl+Z again will unzoom the display, that is
return it to its previous zoom level and orientation.

# Point Zoom  {#point-zoom .hmap_mpe_header4}

Selecting Point Zoom brings up a small menu with the options "In" and
"Out" on it. "In" zooms into the map. "Out" zooms out of the map.

# Pan {#pan .hmap_mpe_header4}

Selecting this option brings up a small menu with the options "Up",
"Down", "Right", and "Left" on it. These options allow the user to
easily navigate around the map.

# Recenter  {#recenter .hmap_mpe_header4}

Selecting this option changes the mouse pointer to a leftward pointing
hand. A single left mouse button click on the MPE Editor display while
in this mode will recenter the map display around that point on the map.

# Tool Bar  {#tool-bar .hmap_mpe_header4}

This option is a toggle button which enables or disables the display of
the application's toolbar. This toolbar by default is "off". When it is
enabled through this menu option, it is displayed just below the main
menubar. This toolbar contains the following items from left to right:
the pan up button, the pan down button, the pan left button, the pan
right button, the recenter button, the zoom in button, the zoom out
button, the latitude box, and the longitude box. These buttons offer an
alternative means of accessing the map zoom, recenter, and pan
functions. ![](media/image4.png){width="2.4756944444444446in"
height="2.6909722222222223in"}

# Set Font {#set-font .hmap_mpe_header4}

This option allows the size of text shown on the MPE Editor map window
to be made larger or smaller. Selecting Set Font on the Tools menu leads
to the submenu shown in Figure 3- . This submenu allows six font sizes
to be chosen. The font choices are **Miniscule**, **Very Small**,
**Small**, **Normal**, **Large**, and **Very Large**. The default font
size is Small.

# Set Colors![](media/image5.png){width="3.0215277777777776in" height="4.41875in"} {#set-colors .hmap_mpe_header4}

Selecting this menu item launches the Color Thresholds GUI (Figure 3- ).
This GUI allows the precipitation ranges and the colors associated with
them to be defined for each of the MPE fields and mosaics. These colors
are set on a user by user basis allowing color schemes to be tailored to
an individual's preferences and needs. This color information is stored
in the ColorValues table in the IHFS database. If a user does not have
color information setup, then the default color scheme is used.

The large scrolled list which occupies the top half of the Color
Thresholds GUI presents the thresholds and the color data associated
with them for the currently selected product. This list box displays the
name of the product, the duration of the product, the numeric threshold,
and the color associated with that threshold. If a product has color
thresholds defined for multiple durations, then all of the color
thresholds defined for the product are displayed in the scrolled list
ordered by increasing duration and increasing threshold value. This
provides a simple way to copy and modify a color threshold for a new
duration.

The bottom half of the Color Thresholds GUI contains the options which
control which product is displayed in the selection list and allow the
setting of individual thresholds and the colors associated with them.
The ColorUse option menu allows the following MPE products to be
selected: Radar Mosaic, Average Radar Mosaic, Max Radar Mosaic, Field
Bias Radar Mosaic, Local Bias Radar Mosaic, Gage Only Analysis,
Satellite Precip, Local Bias Satellite Precip, Multisensor Mosaic, Local
Bias Multisensor Mosaic, P3 Local Bias Mosaic, Best Estimate QPE,
Multi-Hour QPE, Local Span, Local Bias, Height, Radar Coverage, and
PRISM.

The duration text field specifies the number of hours the MPE product
spans. This text field can be used to define color thresholds of
differing durations for a MPE product. This will be useful for defining
different color scales for different duration displays of multi-hour
QPE. For example, separate color scales may be defined and used for 3
hour and 24 hour precipitation accumulations. When displaying a
multi-hour QPE for a duration not specified in the ColorValues table,
the color scheme of the closest matching duration will be used. For
example, if a 9 hour multi-hour QPE product is displayed, but there are
color schemes defined for 3 and 12 hour accumulations, then the 12 hour
color scheme will be used.

The threshold may be Missing, \< Min Threshold or \>=Value. Note that
each product must have a Missing and a \< Min Threshold Value defined
for it.

The Value text box specifies the value associated with the threshold. A
value does not apply to the Missing and \< Min Threshold categories -
they are assigned internally by the MPE Editor application.

Below these options is the Color Name scrolled list. This list contains
the names of all the colors which may be used in defining the
thresholds. These are read in from the ColorNames table in the IHFS
database.

The four buttons at the bottom of the Color Thresholds GUI behave as
follows:

Apply - Updates the color scheme for the selected product. This includes
adding a new color threshold and associated color or modifying an
existing color threshold.

Delete - Removes the color threshold selected in the list of color
thresholds. The Missing and \< Min Threshold definitions may not be
removed.

Default - Resets the color scheme for the selected product back to the
default. The default color scheme is arrived at by first checking the
ColorValues table for user "default" and then determining if the
currently selected product has defined color thresholds. If there is no
user "default", then hard coded colors are used.

Close - Closes the Color Thresholds GUI.

# View {#view .hmap_mpe_header4}

shows the View submenu. It includes the Full Screen and Split Screen
options. Selecting Split Screen causes the MPE Editor map window to
split into two maps with one map occupying the top half of the MPE
Editor window and one map occupying the bottom half of the MPE Editor
window. Selecting Full Screen causes MPE Editor to display only one
map.![](media/image6.png){width="3.09375in"
height="3.1666666666666665in"}

The Split and Full Screen options are only available when MPE data are
displayed. When MPE data are first displayed, the token mpe_split_screen
controls whether the screen is full or split by default. The MPE Editor
Implementation Document explains the use of the mpe_split_screen token.

When in split screen mode, only MPE data in the top window may be
directly edited through the application of polygons and gage edits. The
bottom map window is view only, although it may be affected by edits to
the top window and a rerun of MPE Fieldgen. Specifically:

-   The top and bottom map windows are linked. Zooming and panning in
    either of the windows will cause the other window to also zoom and
    pan.

-   Changing to a new projection under the Projections menu causes the
    map projection to change in both map windows.

-   Overlays selected from the Overlays menu are applied to both
    windows.

-   The options under the MPEcontrol menu apply to both windows. The
    MPEcontrol menu provides the ability to save either the top or
    bottom window as the Best Estimate QPE through the Save Best
    Estimate Top and Save Best Estimate Bottom menu options,
    respectively.

-   The options under the PrecipFields menu only apply to the top
    window. To change the MPE field displayed in the bottom map window,
    the user must right click on the bottom window and select a field
    from the popup menu.

-   With the exception of the Gage Triangles option, the options under
    the BaseFields menu only apply to the top window. Because of its
    overlay-like nature, the Gage Triangles option applies to both
    windows.

-   On the Gages menu, the Add Pseudo Gage and Display 7x7 options only
    work in the top window. The Show Gage Identifiers, Show Gage Values,
    Show Missing Gages, and Gage Color options work in both windows.

-   The options under the Polygons menu apply only the top window. Edit
    polygons may not be drawn on the bottom window.

-   The options under the Climo menu apply only to the top window.

-   The Misc menu options to time lapse and display the multi-hour QPE
    apply only to the top window. The Display Bias Table and Review
    Hourly Radar options are independent of the MPE Editor windows.

Possible uses of the split screen mode include but are not limited to:

-   Visually comparing two MPE fields

-   Displaying how gage, polygon and bias edits to a base field affect a
    derived field after a rerun of MPE Fieldgen.

-   For substitute polygon edits, split screen mode allows the field
    being substituted from to be displayed side by side with the field
    into which the substitution is being performed.

# Clear Data {#clear-data .hmap_mpe_header4}

This option clears MPE data from the MPE Editor display. If the display
is in split screen mode, then it will be returned to a full screen
display. Once the MPE data have been cleared from the display, they can
be redisplayed by selecting the Choose Hour option under the MPEcontrol
menu.

# Projections Menu Options {#projections-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

The projections menu (see Figure 3- ) offers the Flat Lat/Lon, Polar
Stereographic, and HRAP
projections.![](media/image7.png){width="1.9493055555555556in"
height="1.5909722222222222in"}

The Flat Lat/Lon projection treats latitude and longitude as a
rectangular grid which results in increasing amounts of map distortion
at higher latitudes.

The Polar Stereographic projection creates a more realistic map of the
earth's surface. The spacing between lines of longitude decreases
towards the north pole. This is also the projection that the HRAP grid
uses. So, distortion in the MPE precipitation fields and map overlays is
minimized.

The HRAP projection is a specialized case of the Polar Stereographic
projection in that it uses the 105 west longitude line as the reference
longitude. Because a site's MPE forecast area represents a section of
the national HRAP grid, it will always appear as a rectangle when using
the HRAP projection. MPE Editor takes advantage of this and attempts to
fit the site's MPE forecast area as best as possible to the viewing
area.

The HRAP projection offers another convenience. Selecting Areal Zoom or
Ctrl+Z after any zooming, panning, or recentering operation will return
the map view to the initial view. This can be very useful for cases
where consistent screen captures of a several hours worth of
precipitation data are required.

When MPE Editor is first started, it uses the Flat Lat/Lon projection by
default. This default setting may be changed by altering the value of
the hv_map_projection token.

# Overlays Menu Options {#overlays-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

The **Overlays** menu contains toggle buttons which can be used to
enable or disable the display of the overlays offered on the MPE Editor
application (Figure 3- ). The overlays are drawn on top of the spatial
data such as the precipitation fields and the FFG grids.

Overlays remain displayed when changing hours. Radar rings are a special
case where if MPE data are being viewed, then they will change colors
when changing hours to indicate the availability of data at the radar
sites. A green radar ring indicates that there is radar data. A red
radar ring indicates that there is no radar data. Note that radar ring
colors do not change during a time
lapse.![](media/image8.png){width="3.2083333333333335in"
height="4.864583333333333in"}

The Streams/Lakes and Highways/Roads Overlays Menu options lead to
submenus which allow the resolution and density of the displayed overlay
to be chosen. Figure 3- shows the options on the Streams/Lakes submenu.
These include All Streams/Lakes, Major Streams/Lakes, No Streams/Lakes.
Only one of these options may be chosen at a time. The All Streams/Lakes
overlay shows the most detailed water body information. The Major
Streams/Lakes overlay shows only significant rivers and lakes. The No
Streams/Lakes option does not show any stream and lake information.

Figure 3- shows the options on the Highways/Roads submenu. These include
Highways/Roads, Highways, and None. Only one of these options may be
selected. The Highways/Roads option displays both interstates and
secondary roads. The Highways option displays only interstates, and the
None option does not display any interstate or road information.

The management of the overlays and their sources relies on the
**mpe_editor_overlay_configuration** file, located in hydroview's local
data apps directory, to specify the sources of overlay data. There is
one row per overlay in this file, and each row contains information that
controls how that particular overlay is displayed, its default state
upon startup of the application, whether or not it is stored in memory,
and its source.![](media/image9.png){width="3.2631944444444443in"
height="1.2694444444444444in"}

The power of the overlay configuration file is that it allows a user to
switch overlay sources and properties with relative ease. For example,
the MPE Editor overlay configuration file may be set up to use town and
city data from the WHFS database City table or the FSL cities and towns
lpi files. In addition to this, RFCs may set up the overlay
configuration file so that city and town information are plotted from
their geodata files. The overlays used by MPE Editor come from several
different sources which in turn have multiple formats that the program
needs to be able to recognize and interpret. The overlay configuration
file provides an efficient mechanism of informing the application where
it needs to retrieve its overlay information from. The specific format
of the overlay configuration file is covered in detail in the ***MPE
Editor Implementation
Document***.![](media/image10.jpeg){width="2.8895833333333334in"
height="0.8159722222222222in"}

The grayed out options on the Overlays menu are overlays which will be
implemented in MPE Editor for a future AWIPS release.

# MPEcontrol Menu Options {#mpecontrol-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

The MPEcontrol menu provides the options to choose the date and time for
which to display MPE data. It also provides options for both saving MPE
data and regenerating the MPE fields and mosaics. None of the
MPEcontrol, PrecipFields, BaseFields, Gages, Polygons, Climo, and Misc
menu items are accessible until an hour for displaying the MPE data has
been chosen from the "Choose Hour ..." menu item on the MPEcontrol menu.
Once an hour has been selected, the other MPEcontrol, PrecipFields,
BaseFields, Gages, Polygons, Climo, and Misc menu items are
automatically made selectable. Figure 3- shows the options available on
the MPEcontrol menu. ![](media/image11.png){width="3.759027777777778in"
height="2.6486111111111112in"}

# Next Hour Option {#next-hour-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The next hour option selects and displays the next hour's worth of MPE
data. The application keeps track of the specific data field that the
user is looking at so that the same product can be properly loaded for
the next hour, producing continuity for viewing the products while
making sure that the user does not have to reset the field type every
time a new hour is selected.

For the radar mosaic, maximum radar mosaic, average radar mosaic, mean
field bias radar mosaic, local bias radar mosaic, gage-only analysis,
multisensor mosaic, local bias multisensor analysis, triangulated local
bias mosaic, local bias satellite precipitation field, and the best
estimate QPE, when the next hour option is selected and the field
currently being viewed has not been saved, a warning dialog box is
launched stating that the data has not been saved. This dialog box gives
the user the option to cancel the next hour callback and save the data
first or to discard any changes made and continue to load the next
hour's worth of data.

If data for the most recent hour are being viewed, then the Next Hour
button will be grayed out and not selectable.

# Previous Hour Option {#previous-hour-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The previous hour option selects and displays the previous hour's worth
of MPE data. Like the next hour option, the application keeps track of
the specific field the user is looking at so that the same product will
be properly loaded when showing the previous hour's data.

For the radar mosaic, maximum radar mosaic, average radar mosaic, mean
field bias radar mosaic, local bias radar mosaic, gage-only analysis,
multisensor mosaic, local bias multisensor mosaic, local bias satellite
precipitation field, triangulated local bias mosaic, and the best
estimate QPE, when the previous hour option is selected and the field
currently being viewed has not been saved, a warning dialog box is
launched stating that the data has not been saved. This dialog box gives
the user the option to cancel the previous hour callback and save the
data first or to discard any changes made and continue to load the
previous hour's worth of data.

If data for the oldest hour are being viewed, then the Previous Hour
menu option will be grayed out and not selectable.

# Choose Hour Option \... {#choose-hour-option-... .hmap_mpe_header4}

![](media/image12.png){width="4.25in" height="3.96875in"}

The choose data period window provides the ability to select a date and
a time for which to display an hour's worth of MPE data (Figure 3- ).
From left to right across the top of this window are fields for entering
the year, month, and day of the date to retrieve MPE data for. Selecting
the up and down arrow buttons next to the day field adjusts the day up
or down respectively. The selected date not only applies to the
displayed MPE data, but also in a future AWIPS Release it will serve as
the base date for 6/24 hour gage QC and editing operations. All dates
and times displayed in this window are GMT.

The MPE Options portion of the Choose Data Period window allows the hour
for which to view and edit MPE data to be selected. The hour may be
increased or decreased by selecting the up or down arrow button next to
the hour text field. Next to the Hour field are three labels indicating
the date and time when the this hour's Best Estimate QPE was last saved
("Last Save"), the date and time this hour's MPE data set was last
regenerated by MPE Fieldgen ("Last Exec") and whether or not the Best
Estimate QPE has been manually saved. If "n/a" is displayed for Last
Save, it means that a field has not previously been saved for this hour.
A value of "n/a" for Last Exec indicates that MPE Fieldgen has not yet
run for this hour.

Once a date and hour have been selected, MPE data can be displayed by
pressing the Display MPE Data button.

In a future AWIPS Release, the "6/24 hr gage edit options" portion of
the Choose Data Period window will be used to select the duration and
type (precipitation, temperature, or freezing level) of gages to be
edited. These options are being adapted from the Western Region Mountain
Mapper DailyQC program.

By default, the initial date and hour displayed in the Choose Data
Period window are the current date and hour. This can be changed by
specifying the date/hour in the form yyyymmddhh (Z time) as an argument
to the "-t" option on the command line of the call to the MPE Editor
application in the start_mpe_editor startup script.

The "Close" button pops-down the "choose hour" window. The "Help" button
launches the Help window which provides help on a variety of MPE Editor
topics.

# Save Best Estimate Top Option {#save-best-estimate-top-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

Choosing this option saves the currently displayed MPE precipitation
field as the "best estimate" precipitation field for the hour. When in
Split Screen mode, this option saves the field displayed in the top map
window as the Best Estimate QPE field.

The Best Estimate QPE is saved as an xmrg-formatted file. When a file is
saved, a record is written to the IHFS RWResult table containing the
filename, the id of the user running the MPE Editor application (as
indicated by the LOGNAME environmental variable) and the date/time that
the file was saved. Note that missing values are replaced by 0.0 in the
precipitation field before creating the xmrg file. This is done
specifically for MAPX, an OFS function which relies on these xmrg
precipitation estimates not containing any missing values.

The option to save the best estimate precipitation field only exists for
valid precipitation fields. Base data fields, which include the "Radar
Coverage", "Height", "Local Span", "Local Bias", and "Prism" fields,
cannot be saved as the best estimate QPE.

The "Save Hour's Data" option will also save the data in a netCDF
format, GIF format, JPEG format, and/or in a GRIB format depending on
the values of the "mpe_save_netcdf", "mpe_save_gif", "mpe_save_jpeg",
and "mpe_save_grib" tokens in the .Apps_defaults file(s). When saving
GIF and JPEG images, make sure that the MPE main window is on top of the
window stack until the confirmation message is printed. Failure to do
this will result in creation of an image with other windows obscuring
the main window.

Saving data also sets the auto_save flag to 'F' in the RWResult table
for that hour. This prevents MPE FieldGen from overwriting the best
estimate precipitation field during a subsequent cron or manual rerun.
This preserves the user's edits.

# Save Best Estimate Bottom Option {#save-best-estimate-bottom-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

This option is only selectable when in split screen mode. Choosing this
option saves the MPE precipitation field displayed in the bottom map
window as the "best estimate" precipitation field for the hour. The same
file format and rules apply to the bottom window when it is saved as the
Best Estimate QPE as the top window when it is saved as the Best
Estimate QPE (see the previous section, Save Best Estimate Top Option).

# Regenerate Hour Fields (formerly Rerun Fieldgen\...) {#regenerate-hour-fields-formerly-rerun-fieldgen... .hmap_mpe_header4}

When modifying precipitation and gage data, the user may wish to
incorporate these changes into the the MPE fields and mosaics. An
example of this would be if a radar site was "ignored" (through the
Single Site Radar window) and two new gages are added using the "Add
Pseudo Gage" option. To incorporate this new data into the "Field Bias
Radar Mosaic", "Local Bias Radar Mosaic", "Gage Only Analysis", and
"Multisensor Mosaic" MPE Fieldgen should be run. MPE FieldGen will
regenerate each of these fields with the updated radar and rain gauge
data. If the "Best Estimate QPE" field has not yet been manually saved
for that hour, then it will be updated by rerunning FieldGen. Otherwise,
it will be left unchanged. For this reason, the user should first
perform gage and radar data edits, then rerun FieldGen, then perform
polygon edits, and finally save the hour's data as the Best Estimate
QPE.

When the Regenerate Hour Fields option is selected, the "Regenerate Hour
Fields Dialog" pop-up window appears. Selecting the Yes button will
cause MPE Fieldgen to run and recreate the MPE fields and mosaics for
the current hour. This may take up to 10 seconds. Selecting the No
button will close the Regenerate Hour Fields Dialog and MPE Fieldgen
will not be run.

# PrecipFields Menu Options {#precipfields-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

As shown in Figure 3-12, these menu options allow the display of the
different MPE precipitation mosaics and fields. The first 11 field
options listed on the menu are the "Radar Mosaic", the "Average Radar
Mosaic", the "Max Radar Mosaic", the "Field Bias Radar Mosaic", the
"Local Bias Radar Mosaic", the "Gage Only Analysis", the "Satellite
Precip" field, the "Local Bias Satellite Precip" field, the "Multisensor
Mosaic", the "Local Bias Multisensor Mosaic", and the "Triangulated
Local Bias Mosaic". These mosaics and fields are derived from remotely
sensed precipitation estimates (from radar and the satellite
autoestimator) and ground truth rain gauge observations. The next field
on the PrecipFields menu is the "Best Estimate QPE". This is the
precipitation field selected by MPE Fieldgen or saved by the user as the
best estimate for the hour.
![](media/image13.png){width="2.9166666666666665in" height="3.4375in"}

The availability of the first 11 field options listed on the
PrecipFields Menu depends on the setting of the mpe_generate_list and
mpe_qpe_fieldtype tokens. The mpe_generate_list token allows the
forecast office to pick which MPE products it needs for its operations.
Only these products will be generated by MPE FieldGen and available for
viewing in MPE Editor. The fields which are not available will be grayed
out in the PrecipFields menu.

A complete discussion of the mpe_generate_list token, the
mpe_qpe_fieldtype token, and interproduct dependencies is available in
the MPE Editor Implementation Guide.

# Radar Mosaic Option {#radar-mosaic-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

This field represents the rainfall estimate as derived directly from the
mosaic of DPA grids for each of the individual radar sites that provide
coverage for the WFO or RFC MPE area. It is the raw radar precipitation
estimate. Selecting this option will cause the radar mosaic to be
displayed on the MPE Editor viewing area. For each HRAP grid bin in the
raw radar mosaic, the radar which provides coverage at the lowest height
above sea level is selected to fill that bin. The "Height" and "Radar
Coverage" fields described below are used in determining this optimal
radar value for each of the grid bins.

.

# Average Radar Mosaic Option {#average-radar-mosaic-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The Average Radar Mosaic is derived from the mosaic of DPA grids for
each of the individual radar sites that provide coverage for the
office's MPE area. It is the raw radar precipitation estimate with no
bias corrections applied. The radar estimates have not been adjusted
using gage data.

During the creation of this radar mosaic, if a HRAP grid bin is covered
by more than one radar site, the radar estimated precipitation values
for that HRAP grid bin from each of the radar sites are averaged and
assigned to the grid bin.

# Max Radar Mosaic Option {#max-radar-mosaic-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The Maximum Radar Mosaic is derived from the mosaic of DPA grids for
each of the individual radar sites that provide coverage over a portion
of the office's MPE area. It is the raw radar precipitation estimate
with no bias corrections applied. The radar estimates have not been
adjusted using gage data.

During the creation of this radar mosaic, if a HRAP grid bin is covered
by more than one radar site, the maximum radar value for that HRAP grid
bin is assigned to the grid bin.

# Field Bias Radar Mosaic Option {#field-bias-radar-mosaic-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

This option displays the raw radar mosaic with mean field bias
corrections applied to it. Each radar site has its own mean field bias
value for "correcting" the radar estimated precipitation amounts based
on gage data. These mean field bias values are viewable in the "Display
Bias Table" menu option, discussed more in depth below in the section
about the Misc menu options. The application of the mean field bias
value is an attempt to make the radar-estimated precipitation amounts
more accurate and reliable. In effect, the mean field bias value is
applied to remove biases from the radar estimated precipitation amounts.

The bias values are arrived at by comparing ground truth precipitation
observations (from rain gauges) with the raw radar-estimated rainfall
amounts over ten different spans of time (also known as memory spans)
ranging from under an hour to daily, weekly, monthly, seasonal, and
period of record.

# Local Bias Radar Mosaic Option {#local-bias-radar-mosaic-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The local bias mosaic created by computing the bias for each grid bin of
the HRAP grid that resides within a WFO's or RFC's MPE area. The
resulting grid of local bias values is then applied to the raw radar
mosaic to produce the local bias corrected radar mosaic. By computing
the bias for each HRAP grid bin, it is hoped that local geographical
effects on rainfall can be captured. The actual bias value for each grid
bin can be viewed with the "Local Bias" field. The number of hours of
rain gauge/radar pairs used in the computation of the chosen bias value
can be determined by viewing the "Local Span" field.

# Gage Only Analysis Option {#gage-only-analysis-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The gage only analysis represents the precipitation as estimated by
gages only. In order to compensate for the generally large spacing
between gages, an attempt is made to spatially smooth the precipitation
around a gage point when there are other non-missing gage reports
nearby.

The mpe_del_gage_zeros token controls the handling of gages reporting
values of zero. If this token is set to "ON", then a gage reporting zero
is not considered in the gage only analysis if radar is reporting
precipitation over that gage's location. If the mpe_del_gage_zeros token
is set to "OFF", the default value, then a gage reporting zero is used
regardless of whether or not radar is reporting precipitation over its
location.

The radius of influence of a gage report is 15 HRAP grid bins or
approximately 60 km. This means if an HRAP grid bin is more than 60 km
from the nearest gage site, then it will be assigned a missing value and
will be displayed grayed out. If the grid bin is within 60 km of several
gages, then the gage values are weighted based on their distance and the
mean weighted value is assigned to the HRAP grid bin.

# Satellite Precip Option  {#satellite-precip-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The satellite precipitation option allows satellite estimated
precipitation amounts to be viewed in the MPE Editor display. Satellite
precipitation estimates (SPE) are not included in the multisensor
mosaic.

Note that the SPE product may be time lapsed just like any of the other
products. Also, it may be saved as the best estimate QPE. Unlike the
other MPE precipitation products, the satellite precipitation field is
not created by MPE Fieldgen. It is read from the D2D National Auto
Satellite Precipitation Estimate (Auto SPE) product. The portion of this
national Auto SPE product corresponding to the office's forecast area is
cropped and displayed in MPE Editor each time this product is displayed.

# Local Bias Satellite Precip Option {#local-bias-satellite-precip-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

For this product, a bias value is computed for each HRAP grid bin in the
site's MPE forecast area using collocated rain gauge and satellite
estimated precipitation amounts. These biases are then applied to each
HRAP grid bin within the satellite precipitation field. The net effect
of this is to "correct" or "unbias" the satellite precipitation
estimates. This should make the satellite precipitation estimates more
accurate and reliable. Note that the Local Span Field and Local Bias
Field do not apply to this product. They apply only to the Local Bias
Radar Mosaic. The local span and local bias information for the Local
Bias Satellite Precip field are not displayable in MPE Editor.

# Multisensor Mosaic Option {#multisensor-mosaic-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The multisensor mosaic is a combination of bias corrected radar values
and gage values. Each grid bin in the MPE forecast area is assigned a
value based on neighboring gage and bias corrected radar values. If the
grid bin contains a gage site reporting a non missing value, then it is
assigned the gage's value. Otherwise, it is assigned a value based on
its radar estimated precipitation value and the weighed values of the
closest gages. If there are no nearby gages, then the HRAP bin is
assigned the radar value.

The multisensor mosaic also incorporates Parameter-elevation Regressions
on Independent Slopes Model (PRISM) data (see below). This is done in
areas where there is no radar data but there are some nearby gages. This
often occurs in mountainous regions where the mountain peaks block the
radar beam. If there are a few gages scattered around the mountain
bases, then the climatological PRISM data is applied to the gage values
to estimate what the precipitation amounts were over the higher terrain.

# Local Bias Multisensor Mosaic {#local-bias-multisensor-mosaic .hmap_mpe_header4}

Unlike the Multisensor Mosaic which incorporates the mean field bias (a
bias determined on a radar by radar basis), the Local Bias Multisensor
Mosaic incorporates a bias computed for each HRAP grid bin in the
office's MPE area. The computed bias for each grid bin can be seen by
displaying the Local Bias Field. The memory spans used to compute these
local biases can be viewed by displaying the Local Span Field. The local
bias multisensor mosaic is the result of combining local bias corrected
radar estimates with gage data. The effect of this is to fill in areas
of poor radar coverage using spatially smoothed and climatologically
weighted rain gauge data.

# Triangulated Local Bias Mosaic {#triangulated-local-bias-mosaic .hmap_mpe_header4}

The triangulated local bias mosaic uses the same radar precipitation
unbiasing algorithm used in the P3 application developed at ABRFC. This
algorithm uses the rain gauge data to create a Triangular Irregular
Network (TIN). This network is used to distance weight the gage and
radar values used in the creation of the local bias corrected
precipitation field.

# Best Estimate QPE Option {#best-estimate-qpe-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The Best Estimate QPE field is set to the field indicated by the
"mpe_qpe_fieldtype" token when MPE FieldGen is initially run. Using
options such as substituting precipitation areas (through the "Draw
Polygons" menu item on the Polygons menu) and adding gages (through the
Add Pseudo Gage Option on the Gages submenu) the Best Estimate QPE field
may be easily modified. The Best Estimate QPE field may also be manually
saved through MPE Editor.

# BaseFields Menu Options {#basefields-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

The "Local Span", "Local Bias", "Height Field", "Radar Coverage Field",
and "Gage Triangles" options on the BaseFields menu are reference fields
(Figure 3- ). They describe radar height and coverage characteristics as
well as how radar estimates were corrected using observed gauge amounts
to produce more reliable precipitation
amounts.![](media/image14.png){width="2.9270833333333335in"
height="1.8229166666666667in"}

# Local Span Option {#local-span-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The local span field reflects the memory span that is used for computing
the local bias of each of the HRAP grid bins. Just as the local bias can
be different for each of the grid bins, so is the memory span value
different for each of the grid bins. The "Local Span" and "Local Bias"
fields are used together to compute the "Local Bias" precipitation
mosaic.

# Local Bias Option {#local-bias-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The "Local Bias" field reflects the local bias value for each of the
grid bins in the HRAP grid. The span of time (the memory span) over
which the local bias was calculated is represented by the corresponding
HRAP grid bin in the "Local Span" field described above.

# Height Field Option {#height-field-option .hmap_mpe_header4}

The height field displays the lowest available radar height that
provides coverage for a given HRAP grid bin. If a low elevation radar
beam is blocked relatively close to the radar emitter, then the next
higher elevation radar beam is selected in hope that it will be high
enough to "see" over the obstacle. If, because of missing radars or
ground obstacles, the grid bin has no coverage from any radar, then it
is assigned a missing value. For each HRAP grid bin, the height field
represents which radar was chosen to provide reflectivity-derived
precipitation estimates during the construction of the radar mosaic
field. The height field does not apply to the average and maximum radar
mosaics.

# Radar Coverage Field {#radar-coverage-field .hmap_mpe_header4}

Based on the "Height Field", the radar coverage field displays which
radar site is providing precipitation information for each HRAP grid
bin. The "Height Field" is used in determining which radar location
provides the lowest coverage for each of the bins. If no radar is
providing coverage for a grid bin, then the grid bin receives a missing
value. Ultimately, this field is used in determining the radar biases
that are applied to each of the grid bins when computing products such
as the "Field Bias" radar mosaic. The radar coverage field does not
apply to the maximum and average radar mosaics.

# Gage Triangles {#gage-triangles .hmap_mpe_header4}

The creation of the Triangulated Local Bias Mosaic involves creating a
gage based Triangular Irregular Network (TIN). The gage triangles option
shows the TIN that was used in the creation of the current hour's
Triangulated Local Bias Mosaic.

# Gages Menu Options {#gages-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

![](media/image15.png){width="3.1458333333333335in" height="3.28125in"}

The Gages menu, shown in Figure 3- , contains the "QC Precipitation",
"QC Temperature", "QC Freezing Level" "Save Level 2 Data", "Add Pseudo
Gage", "Gage Table \...", "Display 7x7...", "Show Gage Identifiers",
"Show Gage Values", "Show Missing Gages", and "Gage Color" options.

# QC Precipitation {#qc-precipitation .hmap_mpe_header4}

The QC Precipitation option is not implemented in AWIPS Release 7.1. It
will be implemented in a future AWIPS release. It is part of the ongoing
project to merge DailyQC gage editing tools into MPE Editor.

# QC Temperatures {#qc-temperatures .hmap_mpe_header4}

The QC Temperature option is not implemented in AWIPS Release 7.1. It
will be implemented in a future release. This is part of the ongoing
project to merge DailyQC gage editing tools into MPE Editor.

# QC Freezing Level {#qc-freezing-level .hmap_mpe_header4}

The QC Freezing Level option is not implemented in AWIPS Release 7.1. It
will be implemented in a future release. This is part of the ongoing
project to merge DailyQC gage editing tools into MPE Editor.

# Save Level 2 Data {#save-level-2-data .hmap_mpe_header4}

The Save Level 2 Data option is not implemented in AWIPS Release 7.1. It
will be implemented in a future AWIPS build. This option is part of the
ongoing project to merge DailyQC gage editing tools into MPE Editor.

# Add Pseudo Gage {#add-pseudo-gage .hmap_mpe_header4}

This option allows the user to add a false (pseudo) gage report. When
this option is selected, the mouse pointer temporarily turns into a
leftward pointing hand to indicate that the application is in "pseudo
gage mode". Left clicking on the portion of the MPE Editor viewing area
that the user would like to insert the new gage brings up the "Add
Pseudo Gage" window. This sub-window consists of a slider bar to set the
gage's value and option buttons which allow the user to set the value,
to cancel the value selection and to get more help about the add pseudo
gage functionality. Once the slider bar is set to the desired value and
the "Ok" button is selected, the new gage report is created in the
database by inserting a new record into the PseudoGageVal IHFS database
table. In order for the new gage value to be used in the generated
fields, the "Regenerate Hour Fields" option must be selected from the
MPEcontrol menu. After MPE FieldGen has been rerun, the "Gage Only",
"Multisensor Mosaic" and "Triangulated Local Bias" analyses will reflect
the new gage. If displaying the gage identifiers, then once MPE FieldGen
is rerun, the pseudo gage will have a name with the format "PSEUDONN"
where NN is the number of pseudo gages created for the hour, starting
with the number "00\".

# Gage Table \... {#gage-table-... .hmap_mpe_header4}

The gage table provides a tabular display of all of the gages contained
within the forecast area's HRAP grid. These are the gages that
contribute to the "Multisensor" and "Gage Only" fields and, and these
gages are used in the computation of the mean field bias and the local
bias. This gage listing includes any pseudo gages created by the user.
The GUI consists of a simple menu bar with the submenu headings
"Control", "Sort Gages", and "Help". "Control" provides the option to
quit the gage table. "Sort Gages" provides the ability to sort gages by
gage value, by gage identifier, and by radar identifier. "Help" provides
access to the help gui.

The main portion of the gage table consists of a large table. Each row
in this table corresponds to one gage location. Each row has 11 columns.
These are "GageID", "Gage", "BestQPE", "MultiSensor", "RadarID",
"RadarMosaic", "FieldBias", "LocalBias", "GageOnly", "Satellite", and
"Edit". The "Gage ID" column displays the identifier of the gage. The
"Gage" column displays the value of the gage. The "BestQPE" column
displays the best estimate QPE for the HRAP bin that the gage occupies.
The "MultiSensor" column displays the multi-sensor precipitation
estimate for the gage's HRAP bin. The "RadarID" column indicates which
radar umbrella the gage is covered by. The "RadarMosaic" column shows
the radar estimated rainfall for the HRAP grid bin the gage is located
in. The "FieldBias" and "LocalBias" columns display the field bias radar
mosaic values, respectively, for the HRAP bin the gage is located in.
The "GageOnly" column displays the value from the Gageg Only Analysis
field corresponding to the gage's location. The "Satellite" column
displays the value from the Satellite Precip field corresponding to the
gage's location. A new value for the gage may be entered under the
"Edit" column. A missing value must be represented as either a "M" or a
"m". Note the when "quit" is selected from the gage table Control menu,
edited gage values will be stored. These edited gage values will be
applied to the MPE products when MPE Fieldgen is rerun.

# Show Missing Gages  {#show-missing-gages .hmap_mpe_header4}

![](media/image16.png){width="4.135416666666667in"
height="3.8333333333333335in"}

The **Show Missing Gages** submenu provides three options for
controlling how missing MPE gage data are displayed. As shown in Figure
3- these are: All Missing, Reported Missing, and No Missing.

There are two categories of missing MPE gage data. The first includes
hourly precipitation totals that are incomplete because a precipitation
report has not been received for the hour. The second, the reported
missing category, includes hourly precipitation totals either manually
set to missing by the forecaster or reported missing (-9999) by the gage
station. The distinction is important because when viewing MPE gage
values for the most recent hour some gage reports may not have been
received yet. These gage reports may eventually arrive. Being able to
view the reported missing gage values separately from the reports which
are missing because a lack of data gives the forecaster an idea of for
which gages data still may still be received.

Missing gage values are displayed as "m". When the All Missing option is
selected then missing gages are displayed regardless of whether or not
they are reported missing. When the Reported Missing option is selected,
then only the missing gages which were either manually set to missing or
reported with a value of -9999 are displayed. If the No Missing option
is selected, then no missing gages are displayed.

# Gage Color {#gage-color .hmap_mpe_header4}

The Gage Color item launches the submenu shown in Figure 3- . The
options are as
follows:![](media/image17.png){width="3.3958333333333335in"
height="4.104166666666667in"}

# Solid Color {#solid-color .hmap_mpe_header5}

Gage values and identifiers are displayed in a single color. This color
is "Sandy Brown".

# Contrast Color {#contrast-color .hmap_mpe_header5}

The gage value and identifier colors are selected in such a way that
they remain visible against their background. This eliminates the
problem where a gage may be the same color as its background, rendering
it hard to see or even invisible.

# Color By QC {#color-by-qc .hmap_mpe_header5}

Gage values and identifiers are colored according to whether or not they
have passed the spatial consistency and multi-sensor quality control
checks. The gage identifier and value will colored red if the gage did
not pass the spatial consistency check. The gage identifier and value
will be colored yellow if the gage did not pass the multi-sensor check.
If the gage has passed these QC checks, then it will be colored sandy
brown.

# Color By Value {#color-by-value .hmap_mpe_header5}

Using this color option, gage data which are overlain on a MPE
precipitation or gage mosaic will be colored according to their values.
The gages are colored according to the color bar associate with the MPE
field they are drawn on top of. For non-precipitation MPE fields (PRISM,
Height Field, Radar Coverage Field, Local Span Field, Local Bias Field),
the gages are drawn using the color sandy brown.

# Display 7 x 7 {#display-7-x-7 .hmap_mpe_header4}

The "Display 7 x 7\" option provides the ability to view a 7 x 7 grid of
HRAP bins centered on a precipitation gage. This feature gives the
forecaster the capability of analyzing the precipitation distribution at
a very detailed scale of resolution around a gage site. It also provides
the ability to modify the gage's value. For example, the user may wish
to lower or raise the gage's precipitation amount to make it more
consistent with the estimated precipitation amounts in the HRAP bins
surrounding it.

When the "Display 7 x 7\" option is chosen from the Gages menu, the
mouse pointer changes to a leftward pointing hand. A gage is selected by
positioning the hand over it and performing a single click of the left
mouse button. If a gage is not directly under the clicked point on the
map, then the gage that is closest to the click point is selected as the
center of the 7 x 7 display. After clicking on or near a precipitation
gage the 7 x 7 Window appears. This simple window contains the
identifier of the gage the grid is centered on, the value of the gage,
and a 7 column by 7 row table where each element represents the
estimated precipitation value of one of the HRAP bins in the vicinity of
the gage.

The values displayed in the grid reflect the type of field that the user
is viewing in the main window. For example, if the best estimate qpe
field is being viewed in the main window, then the values inserted into
the 7 x 7 grid will also be best estimate qpe. The colors assigned to
the values in the 7 x 7 HRAP grid follow the legend displayed with the
MPE product being viewed in the main window.

The 7 x 7 window does not have to be closed between successive gage
edits. The 7 x 7 window display automatically updates each time a new
gage is selected in the MPE Editor display.

The 7 x 7 window has four buttons arranged down its left side. The Apply
button applies the value specified by the Edit Gage Value slider bar to
the gage being edited. The Undo button returns the gage to the value it
had before the most recent edit. The Set Missing button sets the gage's
value to missing. The Close button closes the 7 x 7 GUI and exits MPE
Editor from 7 x 7 mode.

Edited gage values are applied to the MPE analysis when MPE Fieldgen is
rerun.

# Show Gage Identifiers {#show-gage-identifiers .hmap_mpe_header4}

The show gage identifiers option toggles on and off the display of the
gage ids on the MPE Editor display.

# Show Gage Values {#show-gage-values .hmap_mpe_header4}

The **Show Gage Values** option toggles on and off the display of the
gage values on the MPE Editor display. A missing gage value is signified
by the character "m".

# Polygons Menu Options {#polygons-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

The Polygons Menu, shown in Figure 3- has two options, "Draw Polygons"
and "Delete Polygons". These allow specific portions of the MPE
precipitation fields and mosaics to be edited. They also allow areas of
precipitation to be created or removed. The user draws a polygon around
the part of the field which needs to be modified. The modification
chosen by the user is applied to each HRAP grid bin contained within the
drawn polygon. The modification options include setting all HRAP grid
bins within the polygon to the same value, setting a minimum value limit
for all bins within the polygon, setting a maximum value limit for all
bins within the polygon, scaling the values of the grid bins by a
multiplicative factor, or substituting a portion of one MPE field into
another MPE field.![](media/image18.png){width="2.0208333333333335in"
height="1.34375in"}

# Draw Polygons {#draw-polygons .hmap_mpe_header4}

The Draw Polygons option allows the user to manually draw precipitation
areas on the main MPE Editor window by creating edit polygons. Once the
polygon is drawn, the user is given a choice of how the values of the
HRAP grid bins within the polygon are to be changed.

Edit polygons are drawn on the MPE Editor display as follows:

1\) Select the Draw Polygons options on the Polygons menu. The program
enters the draw polygon mode.

2\) A polygon may now be drawn using the mouse and left clicking
wherever a polygon point is desired. To close the polygon, the right
mouse button needs to be clicked once. There is no limit on the number
of points a polygon may contain.

3\) Once the polygon is closed, the "Edit Precipitation" GUI will appear
as shown in Figure 3- . At the top of this GUI, there is a check box
labeled "Make Persistent". Setting this check box will make the drawn
polygon persistent. By default, Polygons are saved on a per product per
hour basis. Unless set to be persistent, a polygon is only applied to
the MPE product for the hour it was created. If the polygon is set to
persistent, then it is applied to the MPE product every hour. By default
the files containing the polygons are deleted after the amount of time
specified in the purge_mpe_files script. Persistent polygons are not
automatically deleted. They must be manually deleted.

4\) The "Edit Precipitation" GUI also contains options for modifying the
data contained within the polygon. The top part of the GUI contains a
slider bar with four buttons, "Set", "Raise", "Lower", and "Scale"
located below it. The slider bar acts in conjunction with each of these
buttons as follows:

**Set** - This button sets all grid boxes contained within the polygon
to the value specified by the slider bar.

**Raise** - This feature sets the minimum value a grid bin contained
within the polygon may have. This threshold value is specified by the
slider bar. All grid bins with values lower than this threshold are
raised to it. All grid bins with values higher than this threshold are
left unchanged.

**Lower** - This feature sets the maximum value a grid bin contained
within the polygon may have. This threshold value is set by the slider
bar. All grid bins with values higher than this threshold are lower to
it. All grid bins with values equal to or lower than this threshold are
left unchanged.![](media/image19.png){width="2.377083333333333in"
height="5.795833333333333in"}

**Scale** - This feature takes the value of each grid bin contained
within the polygon and multiplies it by the value specified on the
slider bar.

In addition to these options, values from the other precipitation fields
may be substituted into the polygon. The bottom part of the Edit
Precipitation GUI contains a list of radio buttons corresponding to the
precipitation products which may be substituted into the polygon. These
are the Radar Mosaic, Average Radar Mosaic, Max Radar Mosaic, Field Bias
Mosaic, Local Bias Mosaic, Multisensor Mosaic, Local Bias Multisensor
Mosaic, Gage Only Analysis, Satellite Precipitation, Local Bias
Satellite Precipitation, Best Estimate QPE, and P3 Local Bias Mosaic.
The Substitute button positioned below these options will fill the
polygon with data from the currently selected precipitation product.

5\) Steps 2 through 4 may be repeated several times to draw multiple
polygons.

The first polygon point must be placed within the bounds of the MPE
forecast area. If it is not, then an error dialog will be displayed
stating that the cursor is out of range. Subsequent points in the
polygon may be drawn inside or outside of the forecast area. If a point
is placed outside of the forecast area's bounds, then it will be
"snapped" back so that it is positioned just inside of the boundary.

Edit polygons are saved to disk. The polygons are stored on a per
product per hour basis. So, polygons drawn on a field are remembered and
redrawn on that field whenever it is displayed in MPE Editor.

# Delete Polygons {#delete-polygons .hmap_mpe_header4}

Selecting the delete polygons option displays the Delete Polygons window
shown in Figure 3- . This window displays the date and hour and name of
the MPE product currently displayed in the MPE Editor window. In the
large list box in the middle of the window, a row of information is
shown for each edit polygon drawn on the MPE product for the given date
and hour. This information includes the polygon number, a true/false
flag indicating if the polygon is currently displayed on the screen, a
true/false flag indicating whether or not the polygon is persistent, how
the grid bins within the polygon where modified, and the value used to
modify the grid bins.![](media/image20.png){width="4.177083333333333in"
height="2.8020833333333335in"}

Polygons are stored in the order they are drawn in. The first polygon
receives the number 1. The second polygon drawn receives the number 2,
and so on. Selecting the Display/Undisplay buttons below the list of
polygons will display or undisplay the selected polygon, respectively.
Undisplaying the polygon does not permanently delete it. It does remove
it from the MPE Editor display. It also prevents it from being used by
MPE Fieldgen in the case where the polygon was drawn on a MPE Product
from which other MPE products are derived. When a polygon is
undisplayed, it will have an entry of 'F' in the Displayed column. When
a polygon is displayed, it will have an entry of 'T' in the Displayed
column.

If a persistent polygon was created, then it will have an entry of 'T'
in the Persistent column. If the polygon is not persistent, then it will
have an entry of 'F' in the Persistent column.

The Action column indicates how the values of the HRAP grid bins
contained within the polygon were modified. The possible values in the
Action column are: Set, Raise, Lower, Scale, and Sub. These actions
correspond to the Set, Raise, Lower, Scale, and Substitute buttons on
the Edit Precipitation window in Figure 3- .

The Value column contains the value used to modify the HRAP grid bins
contained within the polygon. For the Set, Raise, Lower, and Scale
actions, this will be a floating point numeric value to two decimal
places. For the Sub action, this will be the name of the field from
which data was substituted into the polygon.

Selecting a polygon in the polygon list and then pressing the Delete
button will cause that polygon to be permanently deleted. Clicking on
the Delete All button will permanently delete all polygons (both
persistent and non-persistent) drawn on that MPE product.

# Climo Menu Options {#climo-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

PRISM (Parameter-elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model) data
is long term climatological precipitation data. The multisensor
precipitation estimates are scaled by the PRISM average monthly
precipitation climatologies to improve estimates especially in
mountainous regions which are subject to large orographic influences. In
a future release, the average monthly maximum and minimum temperature
PRISM climatologies will be available for
display.![](media/image21.png){width="2.3333333333333335in"
height="1.3958333333333333in"}

\-

The Climo (Figure 3- ) Menu has the following options: "Monthly Prism
Precip", "Monthly Prism Max Temp" and "Monthly Prism Min Temp".

# Monthly Prism Precip {#monthly-prism-precip .hmap_mpe_header4}

Selecting this option will display the average monthly precipitation
PRISM on the MPE Editor map window.

# Monthly Prism Max Temp {#monthly-prism-max-temp .hmap_mpe_header4}

This option is not available. It will be available in a future release
of MPE Editor. It is part of the ongoing project to incorporate new gage
editing tools into MPE Editor.

# Monthly Prism Min Temp {#monthly-prism-min-temp .hmap_mpe_header4}

This option is not available. It will be available in a future release
of MPE Editor. It is part of the ongoing project to incorporate new gage
editing tools into MPE Editor.

# Misc Menu Options {#misc-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

The Misc menu (Figure 3- ) contains options to display the mean field
bias correction factors calculated for each of the radars, to display
the DPA products for the individual radars used in the creation of the
radar mosaic, to time lapse the currently displayed MPE product over a
user-specified period of time, and to the sum and display the Best
Estimate QPE products over a user-specified duration of time.

# Display Bias Table  {#display-bias-table .hmap_mpe_header4}

The "Display Bias Table" option launches the "Edit Bias Table" GUI. From
here, the user may easily view the radar-specific biases for the radar
sites which provide coverage for the WFO or RFC area. The three buttons
across the top of this GUI, "Close", "Apply" and "Help" provide the
means for closing the application, applying bias changes, and getting
more information respectively. There are five columns of data in this
table. Each row in this table provides bias information specific to a
particular radar site. This information includes the radar's identifier,
its mean field bias value, whether or not the mean field bias has been
manually updated, and the A and B coefficients used in the Z-R
relationship by the Radar Product Generator when producing the DPA
product. Note that by selecting any one of the radars listed in the bias
table window, a window displaying the memory span information used in
computing that radar's mean field bias is
shown.![](media/image22.png){width="2.7395833333333335in"
height="1.6770833333333333in"}

# Review Hourly Radar \... {#review-hourly-radar-... .hmap_mpe_header4}

![](media/image23.png){width="2.3020833333333335in"
height="5.395833333333333in"}

The review hourly radar option initially brings up the "Radar Sites"
window (Figure 3- ). This window allows the selection of a specific
radar site that provides coverage within the MPE forecast area. By
highlighting a site and selecting the "Ok" button, the "Single Radar
Site" subwindow is launched (Figure 3- ). This window has four panes or
panels. Going clockwise starting in the upper left hand corner of the
window the panes are "Raw Radar", "Radar Climatology", "Radar Coverage
Map", and "Mean Field Bias Corrected Radar".

The "Raw Radar" map is the radar based digital precipitation product
which has not had a bias correction applied to it. It is a 131 by 131 km
grid centered on the specific radar site. The "Radar Climatology Grid"
is currently unused. The "Radar Coverage Map" is a map of the radar beam
blockages. It is displayed using black and red colors. The black grid
boxes are the grid boxes for which there is no radar coverage available
due to radar beam blockages. The red grid boxes do have radar coverage
available. This information is read from a file in the "misbin"
directory. If the file is not available, then the circle will be drawn
all filled in with red. The "Mean Field Bias Corrected Radar" is the raw
radar field data values multiplied by the mean field bias value (which
is displayed at the bottom of the screen). If data is not available for
the selected radar site, then the text "Missing Radar" is displayed
within the "Raw Radar" and the "Mean Field Bias Corrected Radar" panes.

The menubar across the top of the "Single Radar Site" window contains
the "Control", "Options", and "Overlays" submenus. The "Control" menu
contains the "Close" button. This simply closes the single site window.

The "Options" menu contains the "Edit Bias Value", "Ignore Radar",
"Display Adaptable Param", and "Display Supplemental Data" items. The
"Edit Bias Value" option provides the means to alter the radar mean
field bias value used to "correct" its precipitation estimates to be
closer to gage estimates. It launches the "Edit Bias Value" popup slider
bar window through which the mean field bias value can be easily
changed. The "Ignore Radar" option provides a way of excluding a
specific radar's data from the derived MPE precipitation products. When
this option is selected, the radar's data will not be used in the MPE
analysis when MPE Fieldgen is rerun. The text on this menu option also
changes to Unignore Radar. Selecting it again will allow the radar's
data to be used in the MPE analysis when MPE Fieldgen is rerun.

Note that for both the "Edit Bias Value" and the "Ignore Radar" options,
the "Rerun FieldGen" option must be selected so that all of the MPE
fields can be recomputed without that radar's data.

The "Display Adaptable Param" option displays the radar-specific
adaptable parameters which include preprocessing algorithm parameters,
rate algorithm parameters, accumulation algorithm parameters, and
adjustment algorithm parameters. The "Display Supplemental Data" option
displays data derived from the radar field. This information includes
the product generation time, the volume coverage pattern, the
operational weather mode, the maximum data value, and whether or not
precipitation was detected during the hour leading up to this
product.![](media/image24.png){width="4.382638888888889in"
height="4.888888888888889in"}

Finally, the "Overlays" submenu contains the following options: "RFC
boundaries", "States", "County", "Cities/Towns", "Basin boundaries",
"Rivers", "Precip Gages", and "Radar Umbrella". Each of these overlays
provides a way of toggling on and off a specific overlay. Depending on
the overlay's initial state, the overlay selected is displayed or
cleared in each of the four panes of the "Single Radar Site" window.

The user may display more than one Single Site Radar Window at a time.
One window may be opened for each of the radars providing coverage to
the site's MPE forecast area.

# Time Lapse Submenu {#time-lapse-submenu .hmap_mpe_header4}

As shown in Figure 3- the time lapse submenu contains the following
options: "6hr", "12hr", "24hr", "Other \...", and "End Loop". The first
four options specify the duration of the time lapse. All time lapse
durations end with the current hour of data being examined. So, if the 6
hour time lapse is chosen, then MPE data for the last five hours plus
the current hour are displayed in the time lapse. By default, when time
lapse is started, it begins with the oldest data field and loops to the
most recent data field. It then resets back to the oldest data field and
loops again to the most recent data field. This process continues until
the user ends the time lapse by selecting the "End Loop" menu item,
selects manual loop frame stepping, or performs a zoom, pan or recenter
action.![](media/image25.png){width="3.53125in"
height="2.7291666666666665in"}

When the "End Loop" option is selected, the image displayed in MPE
Editor is the one being viewed before the time lapse was started.

To select manual loop frame stepping, the left or right key on the
keyboard needs to be selected. The left arrow is for reverse looping
while the right arrow key is for normal looping. Pressing the left arrow
key will set the display to the current hour's data field. Subsequent
left arrow key presses will loop backward in time from there. Pressing
the right arrow keyboard button will set the display to the oldest
hour's worth of data within the selected time lapse range. Subsequent
right arrow key presses will loop forward in time from there. To resume
automatic time lapsing, press the up or down keyboard key.

In addition to the "End Loop" menu option, the time lapse may be stopped
by performing a zooming, panning or recentering action on the time
lapsing image. For instance, if an interesting precipitation feature is
observed in a particular frame during time lapsing, by placing the mouse
cursor over the image and clicking the middle mouse button, the time
lapse will stop on that frame and recenter and zoom into that feature.
If a left mouse click was performed instead, then the time lapse would
stop on the frame and recenter on the click point and zoom out.

See time lag between the successive image displays in the time lapse is
specified by the token "hydroview_mpe_timelapse". It is a value in
milliseconds. If the token is not set, then the default duration is 1
second (1000 milliseconds).

A time lapse with a duration other than those explicitly shown on the
time lapse submenu can be set by selecting the "Other \..." option. This
launches a gui with a slider bar that allows the duration of the time
lapse to be set to any value from 1 hour to 24 hours.

# Multi-Hour QPE {#multi-hour-qpe .hmap_mpe_header4}

This provides the ability to display multi-hour precipitation estimates.
At this time, these rainfall totals are derived by summing together the
hourly best estimate QPE products. The user is given full control over
when and how long to tally these rainfall estimates through a simple
user interface ().![](media/image26.png){width="3.828472222222222in"
height="4.180555555555555in"}

This feature is accessed by selecting the "Multi-Hour QPE" item on the
MPE Editor "Misc" menu. This displays the "Multi-Hour Precipitation
Accumulation" window. This interface is divided into two distinct
frames, the Accumulation Interval Setup frame and the Accumulation
Display Control frame. The Accumulation Interval Setup frame has a drop
down menu labeled "Duration:" which allows the user to select the
interval over which to sum the rainfall amounts. If the desired duration
is not on the option menu, then the user may select Other (at the bottom
of the option menu). This will create the "Accumulation Interval" slider
bar which allows which allows any interval from 1 to 72 hours to be
chosen.

Just below the duration option menu is the ending time text field. This
text field specifies the end time of the interval that multi-hour
rainfall totals are being computed over. By default this text field
displays the time of the MPE data field currently being viewed in the
main window. However, it may be easily modified through the use of the
incrementing and decrementing arrow buttons at either end of the
end-time text field. The arrow buttons to the left of the text field,
labeled "Day Adjust", allow the day portion of the date to be modified.
The arrows buttons to the right of the text field, labeled "Hour
Adjust", allow the hour portion of the date to be modified. The user
cannot enter a date directly in the text field.

The "Accumulation Display Control" provides the "Display As" option menu
which allows multi-hour precipitation totals to be displayed as HRAP
grid values, basin averages, county averages, or zone averages. The
"Show Data" button triggers the display of the multi-hour precipitation
estimate based on the user-selected duration, ending time, and display
resolution (HRAP grid, basins, counties, or zones). The identifiers and
values of the precipitation areas may be shown using the "Values" and
"Ids" annotation toggle buttons.

Below the Accumulation Display Control frame are the "Close" and "Help"
buttons which destroy the GUI and allow for the retrieval of
topic-specific help, respectively.

The multi-hour precipitation field cannot be saved as the best estimate
QPE, time lapsed, have polygons drawn on it, or have pseudo gages
plotted on it. Also, since this product spans a multi-hour interval, the
concept of choosing the next or previous hour's worth of data does not
apply. The reason for this is that the Multi-hour precipitation estimate
is not one of the base xmrg fields that is saved on disk for future
reference. It is simply a displayed product that can be used for current
reference. In order to regain access to the MPEcontrol menu items, one
of the fields other than the multi-hour precipitation estimate must be
selected from the MPEfields menu. Missing values encountered during the
accumulation of hourly precipitation totals are not reported to the
user. Missing values may be present on a grid bin by grid bin basis or
as entire missing fields. Keeping this in mind, it is important to
remember that because of missing data, a displayed multi-hour
precipitation estimate for a given number of hours may not have been
able to find data for all of the hours.

When viewing basin-averaged multi-hour rainfall estimates, each basin
must be covered by a minimum percentage of valid, non-missing values in
order to be assigned an average rainfall estimate. If this minimum
percentage is not met, then the basin is assigned a value of missing and
colored as light gray.

# ![](media/image27.png){width="1.5in" height="1.2395833333333333in"} {#section-1 .hmap_mpe_header3}

# Help Menu Options {#help-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header3}

The Help menu displays three menu items: "Help Topics" and "About"(see
Figure 3-26). The "Help Topics" item launches the MPE Editor help window
which provides detailed instruction on the use of the features of the
application. It also allows the user to search for keywords in the help
topics. The "About" item provides the version and release of the MPE
Editor application.

# Mouse Controls and Hot Keys {#mouse-controls-and-hot-keys .hmap_mpe_header1}

Mouse controls and hot keys are provided to speed up the use of the MPE
Editor application. Table 4-1 shows the behaviors associated with a
standard three-button mouse.

  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------
  **Mouse Button**                    **Functionality that Results**

  **Single Left Button Click**        **Zoom out and recenter at the
                                      click point**

  **Single Middle Button Click**      **Zoom in and recenter at the click
                                      point**

  **Single Right Button Click**       **Displays a "pop up" menu near the
                                      click point with additional options
                                      (see below)**

  **Left Mouse Button Press and       **Draw a zoom rectangle. The
  Drag**                              rectangle is completed when the
                                      left mouse button is released. To
                                      zoom into the area defined by the
                                      rectangle, press CTRL + Z. To zoom
                                      out, press CTRL+Z again.**

  **Right Mouse Button Press**        **Displays a "pop up" menu with
                                      additional options (see below). A
                                      release of the right mouse button
                                      pops down the menu.**
  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------

[]{#__RefHeading___Toc139087622 .anchor}Table 4- MPE Editor Mouse
Functionality

# Exceptions to Mouse Functionality {#exceptions-to-mouse-functionality .hmap_mpe_header2}

There are several cases in MPE Editor when the default mouse behavior is
temporarily overridden.

When adding a pseudo gage ( reached from the **Add Pseudo Gage** item
under the **Gages** submenu on the  **Gages** menu), a left mouse click
will select the location on the map to place the pseudo gage. To
indicate that the mouse is in "add pseudo gage mode", the mouse pointer
changes from an arrow to a hand until the location of the new gage is
selected.

When drawing a new polygon (reached from the **Draw Polygons** item
under the **Polygons** menu), a left mouse click draws the vertices of
the polygon. A middle or right mouse button click closes the polygon

+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| #  {#section-2 .hmap_mpe_table_header}                                |
+=======================================================================+
| **In** - Zoom the map in.                                             |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| **Out** - Zoom the map out.                                           |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| **Recenter** - Recenter the map on the point where the user clicks    |
| next.                                                                 |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| **Up** - Pan the map up.                                              |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| **Down** - Pan the map down.                                          |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| **Left** - Pan the map left.                                          |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| **Right** - Pan the map right.                                        |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| **Lat/Lon** - Turn on or off the latitude / longitude information     |
| that chases the cursor.                                               |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| **MPE Info** - Turn on or off the MPE legend                          |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+

Zoom mode is disabled when the user chooses the **Polygons-\>Draw
Polygons** or **Gages-\>AddPseudoGage** menu item.
**Gages-\>ShowGageIdentifiers/Values** menu options are available in
regular or zoom mode.

When the Display 7x7 option is selected from the Gages menu, a click of
the left mouse button will select the gage closest to the click point on
the MPE Editor display and launch the Display 7 X 7 Gage Editing Utility
GUI.

# Pop Up Menu Options {#pop-up-menu-options .hmap_mpe_header2}

![](media/image28.png){width="1.2291666666666667in"
height="2.4791666666666665in"}

A single click of the right mouse button or holding down the right mouse
button while the mouse cursor is over the main viewing area will cause a
"pop up" menu to be displayed at the click point. This popup menu
contains the options shown in Table 4- .

# Hot Keys {#hot-keys .hmap_mpe_header2}

MPE Editor offers several hot keys for accessing some of the more
heavily used features. These are shown in Table 4-2.

  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------
  **Hot Key**                         **Action**

  **Alt +C**                          **Close the MPE Editor
                                      Application**

  **Alt+R**                           **Show a single radar site**

  **Alt+S**                           **Save the MPE Editor screen as a
                                      GIF**

  **Alt+U**                           **Draw the radar rings**

  **Ctrl+B**                          **Display the basins overlay**

  **Ctrl+D**                          **Pan down the display**

  **Ctrl+I**                          **Zoom in the display**

  **Ctrl+L**                          **Pan left the display**

  **Ctrl+N**                          **Show the next hour's data field**

  **Ctrl+O**                          **Zoom out the display**

  **Ctrl+P**                          **Show the previous hour's data
                                      field**

  **Ctrl+R**                          **Pan right the display**

  **Ctrl+S**                          **Save the displayed MPE field as
                                      the best estimate field**

  **Ctrl+T**                          **Toggle the toolbar on and off**

  **Ctrl+U**                          **Pan up the display**

  **Ctrl+Z**                          **Zoom in or out of a zoom
                                      rectangle. This hot key can also be
                                      used to undo the previous zoom,
                                      pan, or recenter operation.**
  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------

# Table 4- MPE Editor Hot Keys {#table-4--mpe-editor-hot-keys .hmap_mpe_table_header}