Vaisala launches latest improvement to thunderstorm notifications and historical data quality

Confidently protecting people and assets requires quality data to make quality decisions. That's why Vaisala has been committed to providing the highest quality lightning data, warning, and analysis services for decades. 

To help users with the safest and most reliable decisions during the summer months when lightning season is at its peak in the northern hemisphere, we have launched new features each spring for the last few years. And today we are launching new features to help further this commitment.

Today's launch includes new features in Thunderstorm Manager to support the improved user experience for users and customers with connected outdoor warning systems, as well as new features in Lightning Integrator API and Lightning Exporter user interface for accessing the highest quality historical lightning data in the world. 

Real-time alerting

Vaisala Thunderstorm Manager is a web-based software providing worldwide thunderstorm tracking and visualization with up-to-the-second lightning data and real-time lightning alerts. To ensure maximum safety for outdoor personnel Vaisala offers on-site outdoor warning systems connected to Thunderstorm Manager alerts. 

Today, the new Thunderstorm Manager version 1.4 adds the ability to easily check the connection status of your web relays, which trigger the on-site flashing lights and sirens when lightning strikes nearby. Also included are performance improvements for delivering National Weather Service weather hazard notifications, for U.S. users, such as severe thunderstorm warnings, wind advisories, and more.

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Historical lightning data

For safety applications it is critical that data is processed, and users alerted, as fast as possible. The real-time data available from the National Lightning Detection Network (NLDN) is the highest quality lightning data available on the planet. 

For analysis applications needing historical data, we take a little more time to ensure another level of precision. To this end, today's launch also includes updates to Lightning Integrator version 3.1 and Lightning Exporter version 3.1, to make reprocessed NLDN data option available to customers via the easy-to-integrate API or easy-to-use user interface, plus the ability to access the new Strike Damage Potential information alongside the improved data. 

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The reprocessed NLDN data with its even higher quality is valuable for forensic analysis, such as asset damage or wildfire investigation. 

For users interested in multiple years of lightning analysis like with lightning density maps or for training machine learning models with consistently high-quality data, we have now retroactively reprocessed the NLDN data from January 1, 2016 to present with the latest NLDN algorithms in TLP 1.2.7, announced in May 2021. This means Lightning Integrator API has the new option of querying either the original real-time merge data (NLDN and GLD360) or the reprocessed NLDN data.

So no matter if you are ensuring your personnel are reliably safe from lightning threats, analyzing your asset damage to ensure reliable power generation and transmission, or building a robust machine learning model, you can trust Vaisala to provide the highest quality lightning data and services for your warning and analysis needs.