[gradsusr] The new and improved wxmaps.org and monsoondata.org, now featuring GrADS 2.1

[Jennifer Adams]

Hi, Everyone -- 
After the release of version 2.1, I spent some time reworking the scripts that generate the real time weather maps at wxmaps.org and monsoondata.org. I wanted to provide some good examples of what the new graphics features can be used for. The anti-aliasing and the fonts make all the graphics look better, but I have also used transparent colors for cloud cover overlays, for showing continental outlines without drawing any lines, and for letting the topographic relief show through the shaded contours. Just adding a fixed alpha value to an existing color palette can make it look a little softer, in contrast to the fully saturated colors that stand out a bit more. I also used stippling of different colors and sizes for the various precipitation types, overlaid on top of the shaded contours showing accumulation amounts -- little white dots showing areas where snow is forecasted! I'm so pleased with how it all looks. Thanks to Ryan Maue for telling me about pngquant, which shrinks the image files down to a manageable size, about 2x the size of the images rendered with the GD library. 
--Jennifer




--
Jennifer M. Adams
Center for Ocean-Land-Atmosphere Studies (COLA)
111 Research Hall, Mail Stop 2B3
George Mason University
4400 University Drive
Fairfax, VA 22030 





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