
Introduction The Algorithm for TRACKing Convective Systems (ATRACKCS, Robledo et al., 2024) is a free and open source Python package for the automated detection and tracking of convective systems, with a special focus on Mesoscale Convective Systems (MCS). MCS are organized cloud clusters that produce regional rainfall and feature vertical development penetrating the mid-upper troposphere. The spatio-temporal characterization of MCS contributed to reducing the vulnerability to severe precipitation events, as well as understanding weather and regional climate. This Python package is a tool for characterizing spatio-temporal distribution and evolution of MCS and is intended for researchers and students interested in exploring MCS dynamics. ATRACKCS provides a set of functions designed for a workflow analysis that includes the detection and tracking of MCS, allowing detailed monitoring of the MCS life cycle both in space and time. The algorithm uses brightness temperature (Tb) and precipitation (P) coming from public satellite data. To represent the identified systems, ATRACKCS uses the convex hull to simplify its shape as polygons. The algorithm parameterization can be adapted to the needs of the MCS detection, as the user is allowed to define the thresholds of Tb, P area of the events and minimum duration. In version 2.0.0, we change the structure of ATRACKCS to improve speed of processing and thus, facilitate the tracking at global scale. We include multiprocessing features to track multiple systems at the same time using both Tb and P. Aditionally, detection of cold clouds was improved by preprocessing the image of Tb and merge close clusters into a single entity, this proved to improve ATRACKCS ability to track more complex systems as tropical cyclones and improve the duration of the tracked events. To deal with the splitting and merging of systems, if multiple systems overlap at the same timestep, ATRACKCS evaluates which systems satisfy the identification criteria and then selects the one with the higher overlapping area to the previous time step to continue the track; the remaining systems are tracked as new ones if satisfy the thresholds. Access to software by using GitHub repository. Thank you very much for using it. We look forward to your comments. https://github.com/ATRACKCS/ATRACKCS.git Cite publication as: Robledo, V., Henao, J. J., Mejía, J. F., Ramírez‐Cardona, Á., Hernández, K. S., Gómez‐Ríos, S., & Rendón, Á. M. (2024). Climatological tracking and lifecycle characteristics of mesoscale convective systems in Northwestern South America. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres,129, e2024JD041159. https://doi.org/10.1029/2024JD041159
convective storm tracking
convective storm tracking
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