[Met_help] Problems getting MET running...bufr problems?

[Steve]

Hi...

I sent your group an e-mail in late August about problems I was having 
getting the MET software to work properly.  While I am able to compile 
all the various components without error, the test cases will not 
sucessfully complete.  In particular, the PB2NC test fails with and end 
of file error during an internal I/O operation, apparently while reading 
or processing bufr data.  After several exchanges of e-mails, we felt 
the problem was with my netCDF compilation and installation.

After a couple of months, I have again had opportunity (and the 
requirement) to get MET working successfully.  As I have continued to 
look at my system, I believe that the problem is not with the netCDF 
installation.  I get no compilation errors and all tests that come with 
netCDF pass on my system.  I am beginning to believe that the problem is 
with the bufr software.

While I can compile the bufr libraries without error, I can not make any 
program that uses BUFR data work properly.  I suspect that there may be 
an issue with my system and OS being 64-bit.  If you "od -c" the blocked 
prepbufr files that come with the MET package, they have a four-byte 
fortran record length header.  I note the same header size if I download 
blocked bufr files from NCEP.  However, if I use the cwordsh program on 
an unblocked bufr file I get from NCEP, or if I do any FORM=FORMATTED 
fortran open/write with my own programs, I get an eight-byte header. 
I've attached the output from the "od -c" on one of your sample blocked 
bufr files and a file that I blocked on my system using cwordsh.

My system type listed by "uname -m" is "x86_64".

I know that the bufr software is totally external to your system, but I 
was wondering if anyone else working with the MET software has run 
across this type of issue.  At the moment, the bufr format is the only 
way to get observed data into MET, so I need to find a solution to this 
problem.

Steve Masters  smasters at cfl.rr.com
ENSCO, Inc.    masters.steve at ensco.com
Melbourne, FL
-------------- next part --------------
0000000 270   &  \0  \0   B   U   F   R  \0   & 262 003  \0  \0 022  \0
0000020 003  \a  \0  \0  \v 001  \f 001  \0  \0  \0  \0  \0  \0  \0  \0
0000040   &  \0  \0 001 200   C  \0 037 001  \0 001  \0 002  \0 003   A
-------------- next part --------------
0000000 340   &  \0  \0  \0  \0  \0  \0   B   U   F   R  \0   & 336 003
0000020  \0  \0 022  \0 003  \a  \0  \0  \v 001  \f 001  \0  \0  \0  \0
0000040  \0  \0  \0  \0   &  \0  \0 001 200   C  \0 037 001  \0 001  \0