This document discusses the development of a real-time lightning alert system by The Weather Network. The system uses sensors to detect lightning strikes across Canada and send alerts to the public through a website, TV, texts, emails and mobile apps. It processes over 2 million lightning strikes annually in Canada within a short time frame. Future products will include dynamic maps on websites and TV showing lightning locations and push notifications to mobile devices.

1. CONNECT. TRANSFORM. AUTOMATE.
We Interrupt your Regularly
Scheduled Broadcast…
Real Time Lightning Alerts From The Weather Network
Mark Ireland, Safe Software, on behalf of
Fiona Hatfield, GIS Developer @ The Weather Network

2. Lightning!
License: CC BY-SA 2.0
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jeffanddayna/3525003260/

3. Lightning!
! …is Dangerous
! 9-10 deaths, 164 injuries per year
! 4,000 forest fires
! 500-600 power outages (Manitoba)
! …is Frequent
! 2.34 million strikes per year (1.4 billion worldwide)
! 1 strike every three seconds during summer

4. Project Goals
! Public Alerts:
! Website
! TV
! Text/SMS and Email
! Mobile applications
! Also:
! Dynamic maps
! Interactive tools
“To provide information for the public’s safety and wellbeing”

5. Events, Alerts, and GIS
Event
Geo-fence
Notification
Action
Geo-fence
Virtual Perimeter or
Area of Interest
Spatial Predicates
Relationships
Am I affected by the event (overlap)?
Will I be (route intersection)?
Am I close to an event?
Where is the nearest event?
Real-Time Processing
GIS

6. Real-Time Sensors
Pelmorex Lightning Detection Network

7. Setup
! Listen for a lightning strike (open TCP/IP port)
! Write to PostGIS
! Spatial Processing
! Other logic
! Generate customized JSON message
! Dispatch message via JMS Key Transformers
! TCPIPReceiver
! PointOnAreaOverlayer
! Tester
! JSONTemplater
! JMSSender

8. Implementation
Challenges
! High volumes of Real-time data
! Cross-platform development
! Short time frame (six months)
We benchmark tested
strikes a second (aka Stormageddon)
50,000

9. Products
! Website

10. Products
! Mobile

11. Next Products
! Dynamic Maps (website/TV)
! Lightning Alerts on all phone platforms
! Push notifications
! User selectable warnings

12. Thank You!
! Questions?
! For more information:
! Fiona Hatfield - fhatfield@pelmorex.com
! Pelmorex Media Inc.
! www.theweathernetwork.com