2006: Verification region selection and data assimilation for adaptive sampling

Adaptive or targeted observations supplement routine observations at a pre-specified targeting time. Adaptive observation locations are selected to supplement routine observations in an attempt to minimize the forecast error variance of a future target forecast within some predefined verification region (VR) at some predefined verification time. Ideally, the VR is placed in a location where unusually large forecast errors are likely. Here, we compare three methods of selecting VRs. A climatological method based on seasonal averages of forecast errors. An unconditioned method based on verification time ensemble spread and a conditioned method based on an Ensemble Transform Kalman Filter (ETKF) estimate of forecast error variance given the routine observations to be taken at the targeting time. To test the effectiveness of the three approaches, Observation System Simulation Experiments (OSSEs) on a chaotic barotropic flow were performed using an imperfect model. To test the sensitivity of our results to the type of forecast error covariance model used in the data assimilation (DA) scheme, two types of DA schemes were tested: An isotropic DA scheme and a hybrid DA scheme. For isotropic DA, correlations between vorticity forecast errors at any two points were solely a function of the distance between the points. For hybrid DA, th