FAQ

18 Oct FAQ

1. What is nextSense?

The Solar Energy nowcasting and short-term forecasting system (NextSense) combines fast radiative transfer modelling and cloud motion vectors in order to forecast the spectrum of the downwelling surface solar irradiation (DSSI). Real-time cloud and aerosol optical properties from the Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared Imager (SEVIRI) on board the Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) satellite and the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), along with other variables, are used as inputs to the fast radiative modelling scheme. More information can be found in Kosmopoulos et al., (2018) and Kosmopoulos et al., (2020).

2. What products are available from nextSense?

Near real time nowcasting and short-term forecasting of the Global Horizontal Irradiance (GHI) and the Direct Normal Irradiance (DNI) are available. In addition to the total shortwave solar irradiance, the UV index is also available. Relative information can be found in Kosmopoulos et al., (2021). A number of other products such as biologically active doses of the surface solar irradiance can be also produced although they are not operationally available.

3. What is the spatial and temporal resolution of nextSense?

At the moment, the spatial resolution at which information is available is 0.05°x0.05°. Temporal resolution of the forecasts is 15 minutes.

4. What is the spatial coverage of nextSense?

At the moment, nowcasting and short-term forecasting is available for Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Recently the system has been also tested and worked successfully for Asian regions (e.g., Masoom et al., (2018) and Chandra Dumka et al., (2020))