RainStorm

[reyn-stawrm]

RainStorm is a software precise positioning tool that performs a variety of functions related to photogrammetry. It is developed and published by Northrop Grumman and has been used as the primary precise positioning tool in five major conflicts. RainStorm is notable because it was the first commercial digital precise positioning tool software program. RainStorm is the next generation for the RainDrop software developed by Northrop Grumman.

Features

RainStorm provides a user-friendly workstation envirnoment that allows an aim-point technician to quickly and precisely locate a 3D coordiates from stereo images and other imagery sources using a process called mensuration. The tool also provides phtogrammetry capabilities to enhance and support point mensuration.

RainStorm supports several image formats including NITF (including national and high resolution stereo imagery), JPEG/JPEG 2000, TIFF/GeoTIFF, and RAS.

RainStorm Target Workflow Manager Web Services

The RainStorm Web Services allow multiple RainStorm workstations and clients to be linked in a network configuration. Systems can be configured using a Local Area Network (LAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), or the Secret Internet Protocol Router Network (SIPRNet) environment. A Windows Server running IIS and SQL Server is required to host the RainStorm Web Services and System Coordinator.

Client machines communicate through the RainStorm Client Web Services (RCWS). The RainStorm Server Web Services (RSWS) coordinate the registering and un-registering of RainStorm workstations and resulting coordinate information. The RainStorm Systems Coordinator acts as a scheduler using load-balancing algorithms. As new requests from clients arrive, they are assigned to registered workstations. A priority scheme allows time-sensitive targeting requests to take precedence or interrupt lower-priority requests that may already be in progress. As workstations complete mensuration requests, they are sent back to the Web Server, which passes the results onto the requesting client. The Coordinator also keeps a log of results suitable for an audit trail.