Rolling Review of Requirements and Statements of Guidance

(page updated on 03-Dec-2018 )

The Rolling Review of Requirements process

Using the Rolling Review of Requirements (RRR) process defined by the Manual on the Global Observing System (WMO-No. 544) (Part II, Requirements for observational data), user requirements for observations are compared with the capabilities of present and planned observing systems.

User requirements are collated in a comprehensive, systematic and quantitative way in the WMO Observing Requirements database, which attempts to capture observational requirements to meet the needs of all WMO programmes.

The comparison of user requirements with observing system capabilities for a given application area is called a Critical Review. The output of this is reviewed by experts in the relevant application and used to prepare a Statement of Guidance (SOG), the main aim of which is to draw attention to the most important gaps between user requirements and observing system capabilities, in the context of the application. A wide range of applications within WMO programmes have already been addressed.

A more detailed description of the Rolling Requirements Review process is available for download (pdf)

Statements of Guidance (SOG)

For each of the application areas considered, the SOG provides an assessment of the adequacy of observations to fulfill requirements and suggests areas of progress towards improved use of space-based and surface-based observing systems. Only the most significant variables in a given application area have been analyzed in the SOGs.

Although not formally an Application Area, the requirements for Global Cryosphere Watch (GCW) are split between all other Applications Areas. CBS is still discussing the status of the GCW within the Rolling Review of Requirements. Please contact GCW Project Manager, Rodica Nitu for related issues.The following GCW documents shall be noted:

• GCW Implementation Strategy
• GCW Implementation Plan
• Cryosphrere theme report for the Integrated Global Observing Strategy (IGOS) partnership (WMO/TD-No. 1405 - August 2007)

Notes:
1 - Synoptic Meteorology application area has now been merged into the Nowcasting and Very Short Range Forecasting Application Area.

2 - Atmospheric Chemistry application area has been replaced, and split into three new application areas, i.e. (i) Forecasting Atmospheric Composition, (ii) Monitoring Atmospheric Composition, and (iii) Providing Atmospheric Composition information to support services in urban and populated areas. Statements of Guidance for the three new application areas are under preparation. Meanwhile, the old version of the Statement of Guidance for Atmospheric Composition is available here.

3 -IPET-OSDE-3 (Jan. 2018) decided to discontinue the Climate Applications (Other aspects, addressed by the Commission for Climatology) Application Area, but to keep the Statement of Guidance up to date and link it from this Webpage. CCl will keep the document updated and assure whether important requirements are missing from a CCl/climate applications view. However, there is no intention to submit quantitative observational user requirements since it is assumed that such requirements are mostly captured by the GCOS 'Climate Monitoring' application area as well as by other existing application areas.