Video tutorial

Download the ArcGIS Pro (v.3.1) Toolbox here: NOAA Atlas 14 Grid Processor

• If you need the toolbox for other versions of ArcGIS Pro, feel free to reach out!

Disclaimer

This software is provided "as is," without any express or implied warranties, including but not limited to the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no event shall the authors or copyright holders be liable for any claim, damages, or other liability, whether in an action of contract, tort, or otherwise, arising from, out of, or in connection with the software or the use or other dealings in the software.

Step 1: Adding the Toolbox to ArcGIS Pro

1. Open ArcGIS Pro.

2. Go to the Catalog pane.

3. Right-click on Toolboxes and select Add Toolbox.

4. Navigate to the location of the NOAA Atlas 14 Toolbox file (e.g., NOAA_Atlas_14_Toolbox.atbx) and click OK.

Step 2: Setting Up the Parameters

1. In the Catalog pane, expand the NOAA Atlas 14 Toolbox and double-click on the Atlas14GridProcessor tool to open it.

2. Fill in the required parameters:

   • Output Directory: Select the folder where the downloaded and processed data will be saved.

     • Example: C:\Users\YourName\Documents\NOAA_Atlas14_Project

   • Project Name: Enter a short name for the project without spaces. This name will be used to label the processed files.

     • Example: Project1

   • Shapefile: Select the shapefile that defines the area for clipping the raster files. Ensure the shapefile has a set coordinate system. Since precipitation grids have course resolution, the clipping will result in some grid cells inside the shapefile being missed. Therefore, make sure the selected shapefile is larger than your HEC-HMS model extent. You can use the Buffer function in ArcGIS to generate this shapefile.

     • Example: C:\Users\YourName\Documents\StudyArea\study_area.shp

   • Base URL: Provide the base URL from which the NOAA Atlas 14 grid zip files will be downloaded. The URL should end with the region code (e.g., se for Southeast). You can find the links to NOAA PFDS here: https://hdsc.nws.noaa.gov/pfds/pfds_gis.html 

     • Example: https://hdsc.nws.noaa.gov/pub/hdsc/data/se/

Step 3: Running the Tool

1. Click Run to execute the tool.

2. The tool will perform the following tasks:

   • Create necessary directories for storing the downloaded, unzipped, and clipped files.

   • Download the NOAA Atlas 14 grids based on the provided base URL and region code.

   • Unzip the downloaded files into the "Downloaded Files" directory.

   • Rename the files according to the specified naming convention.

   • Clip the .asc raster files based on the provided shapefile and save the clipped rasters in the "Clipped Files" directory.

Step 4: Reviewing the Results

1. Once the tool has finished running, navigate to the Output Directory.

2. Inside the output directory, you will find three subdirectories:

   • Downloaded Files: Contains the unzipped grid files.

   • Clipped Files: Contains the clipped raster files.

   • Atlas14_GridZips: Contains the downloaded zip files.

3. The clipped rasters in the "Clipped Files" directory will be named according to the specified project name and the renaming convention.

Example Workflow

1. Open ArcGIS Pro and add the NOAA Atlas 14 Toolbox to your project.

2. Open the Atlas14GridProcessor tool.

3. Fill in the parameters:

   • Output Directory: C:\Users\YourName\Documents\NOAA_Atlas14_Project

   • Project Name: Project1

   • Shapefile: C:\Users\YourName\Documents\StudyArea\study_area.shp

   • Base URL: https://hdsc.nws.noaa.gov/pub/hdsc/data/se/

4. Click Run to execute the tool.

5. After the tool completes, review the output files in the specified output directory.

Troubleshooting Tips

• Ensure that the shapefile has a defined coordinate system. The shapefile should not be saved in a geodatabase.

• Verify that the base URL is correct and ends with the appropriate region code.

• Check for any error messages in the ArcGIS Pro Geoprocessing pane if the tool does not run successfully.