MPTRAC vs The Physics Aviary
MPTRAC
slcs-jsc.github.ioThe Physics Aviary
thephysicsaviary.comSide by side
| Figure | MPTRAC | The Physics Aviary |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 2 | 1 |
| Spec score · Physics Simulation Software | 8.7 (#7) | 8.0 (#31) |
| Assessment tools | No | Yes |
| Delivery mode | hybrid | web |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Lesson library | No | Yes |
| Purpose | MPTRAC is a Lagrangian particle dispersion model for analyzing atmospheric transport in the free troposphere and stratosphere. | The Physics Aviary provides programs to help physics students master big ideas in physics. |
| Support | The project directs questions, support, and collaboration inquiries to Dr. Lars Hoffmann at the Jülich Supercomputing Centre. | The maker invites questions by email at [email protected]. |
| 3D visuals | Yes | Yes |
Plans
In their own words
MPTRAC
MPTRAC is a Lagrangian particle dispersion model for studying atmospheric transport in the free troposphere and stratosphere. It calculates forward and backward air-parcel trajectories from meteorological wind fields, with stochastic diffusion, subgrid wind variation and mixing between parcels. Optional process parameterizations cover convection, sedimentation, decay, gas-phase and aqueous-phase chemistry, and wet and dry deposition. Listed research applications include long-range pollutant transport, volcanic ash dispersion, tracer experiments and atmospheric chemistry.
The browser-based Web Runner can configure, run and visualize simulations, then download results without local installation. It is limited to 10,000 air parcels, 30 days and 10 minutes of model runtime. The model needs meteorological input, normally netCDF files on a regular pressure, longitude and latitude grid. MPTRAC supports hybrid MPI, OpenMP and OpenACC parallelization, and offers visualization interfaces for Gnuplot and ParaView. It is GPL-3.0 software for Linux, self-hosted and web use; listed pricing includes free.
The Physics Aviary
The Physics Aviary has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.