:allow_comments: False .. _doc_faq: Frequently Asked Questions ========================== What can I do with Met.3D? -------------------------- Met.3D is an interactive visualization tool for atmospheric gridded data. It supports both 2D and 3D rendering techniques and is designed to help you explore meteorological model output and reanalysis data. Features include isosurface rendering, cross-sections, volume rendering, streamlines, and more. For a detailed list of supported features, refer to :doc:`list_of_features`. Is Met.3D free to use? ---------------------- Yes. Met.3D is open-source software released under the `GNU General Public License (GPLv3)`_. You are free to use, modify, and redistribute it under the terms of that license. If you use Met.3D in a publication or presentation, please cite it as described in :doc:`citing`. Which platforms are supported? ------------------------------- Met.3D runs on Linux and Windows. On Linux, it is available as a prebuilt conda package. It can also be built from source using either a conda environment or the vcpkg toolchain. On Windows, it can be built using vcpkg or run via WSL. Installation instructions for all supported platforms are available in the :doc:`installation instructions `. Does Met.3D run on macOS? -------------------------- Not at this time. Met.3D requires OpenGL 4.3, but Apple limits OpenGL support to version 4.1. Adapting the code to work around this would require considerable effort. If you are an experienced macOS developer and would like to help, contributions are very welcome. What are the hardware and system requirements? ---------------------------------------------- The main requirement is a GPU with OpenGL 4.3 support. The amount of GPU memory needed depends on the size of your data. A rough rule of thumb is to expect roughly one copy of each variable per time step to reside in video memory. System RAM should be at least as large as GPU memory, since Met.3D caches data there to improve animation performance. A multi-core CPU is beneficial because Met.3D uses multithreading for some computations. See :doc:`/01_about/system_requirements` for details. What data formats does Met.3D support? --------------------------------------- Met.3D reads gridded data in `NetCDF`_ format following the `CF Conventions`_. It can also read ECMWF and DWD GRIB files via the ecCodes library. For trajectory data, Met.3D uses its own trajectory file format. See :doc:`/03_user_manual/data_handling/gridded_data` for details on preparing and loading your data. Where can I get example data to try Met.3D? -------------------------------------------- The :doc:`getting started tutorial ` uses ERA-5 reanalysis data from the Copernicus Data Store. The Met.3D repository includes a Python download script and instructions to get a suitable sample dataset. What user interface does Met.3D use? ------------------------------------ Met.3D uses a custom graphical user interface based on `Qt`_ and the `Qt Advanced Docking System`_ to support modular and flexible layouts. Can Met.3D be used in the browser? ----------------------------------- No. Met.3D is a hardware-accelerated desktop application. We are working on a complementary web page that presents daily-generated visualizations from operational forecasts, but these are static images and not interactive. Why does Met.3D use OpenGL instead of Vulkan or Direct3D? ---------------------------------------------------------- Met.3D uses OpenGL for its wide cross-platform support and open standards. We are aware of OpenGL's deprecation in some environments and plan to explore a future transition to Vulkan. Do you support icosahedral grids, like the one used by the ICON model? ----------------------------------------------------------------------- The stable version of Met.3D supports only regular latitude-longitude grids. Experimental support for rotated and proj4-projected grids is available if you build Met.3D from source. See :doc:`this page <05_developer_manual/02_data_pipeline/projection>` for details and limitations. Icosahedral grids (like ICON) are not directly supported, but you can use external tools such as CDO to interpolate data to a regular grid before loading it. We plan to integrate an optional module that automates this step via CDO internally. For more details on using ICON data, see :doc:`/03_user_manual/data_handling/data_preparation`. My dataset does not appear to be compatible with Met.3D, or variables are missing after loading. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Check the log output for error messages or metadata parsing issues. Make sure your dataset follows the CF conventions. See :doc:`/03_user_manual/data_handling/gridded_data` for more information. If you still encounter issues, feel free to `contact us`_. I encountered an error or bug in Met.3D. ----------------------------------------- Please report issues via our `GitLab repository`_. Include steps to reproduce the problem and your system configuration to help us investigate. How do I get started with Met.3D? ----------------------------------- Check out the :doc:`getting started guide ` for a guided introduction to Met.3D. For detailed usage information on specific visualization modules, consult the actor-specific user documentation. You can also `reach out`_ with specific questions. I want to add Met.3D visualizations to a publication or a video presentation. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Please cite Met.3D as described in :doc:`the citing reference `. If you would like support in producing high-quality visuals, feel free to `contact us`_. We are happy to help. How can I contribute to Met.3D? ------------------------------- Met.3D is written in C++. To get started with development or propose contributions, check out the :doc:`/04_contributing/met3d_development/index` guide. The features I need are not available and I cannot implement them myself. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you have ideas for features or data formats you would like to see supported, please `let us know`_ by submitting an issue to our repository. We may be able to help or collaborate depending on available resources. How can I visualize ensemble data? ------------------------------------ Met.3D supports loading ensemble data and provides several ensemble visualization options. You can browse individual ensemble members, display spaghetti plots, and compute ensemble statistics. Full ensemble visualization capabilities (e.g., spread, clustering) are an area of active development. How can I animate my visualizations? -------------------------------------- Met.3D supports animation via camera keyframes and the animation panel. From the animation panel, you can define a camera sequence and export the result as an image sequence or a video file. Can I save and share my visualization setup? --------------------------------------------- Yes. Met.3D uses session configuration files that capture the current visualization state. You can save, load, and share these files to reproduce or distribute a visualization product. Can I script Met.3D or automate workflows? ------------------------------------------- Met.3D is primarily GUI-driven. We are exploring options for a Python scripting interface. .. _GNU General Public License (GPLv3): https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.html .. _NetCDF: https://www.unidata.ucar.edu/software/netcdf/ .. _CF Conventions: https://cfconventions.org/ .. _Qt Advanced Docking System: https://github.com/githubuser0xFFFF/Qt-Advanced-Docking-System .. _Qt: https://www.qt.io/ .. _GitLab repository: https://gitlab.com/wxmetvis/met.3d .. _contact us: https://www.hcds.uni-hamburg.de/en/research/1fg-vda/people.html .. _reach out: https://www.hcds.uni-hamburg.de/en/research/1fg-vda/people.html .. _let us know: https://www.hcds.uni-hamburg.de/en/research/1fg-vda/people.html