Working in partnership with federal and state agencies and
private industry, AlphaTRAC builds, implements, maintains, and
operates plume prediction systems tailored for emergency
planning, preparedness, and response.

The Computer-assisted Protective Action Recommendation System (CAPARS) is an
atmospheric dispersion modeling system used for real-time emergency response
projections of plume impacts from radiological and chemical releases over

complex terrains. It provides plume, weather, hazard, and related information with the accuracy and speed needed to support all levels of emergency management and response, including the urgent demands of first responders.

CAPARS is designed to automate many of the tasks in the emergency consequence projection process. The automation reduces the potential for user input error, minimizes the time required to generate answers, and helps to reduce the stress imposed upon dose assessment personnel in the hectic environment of emergencies.

The Benefit:

CAPARS is designed to meet the key decision support needs of emergency managers, incident commanders, field monitoring teams, and regulatory agencies. The system:

• Automates the emergency response consequence projection process
• Reduces user input error
• Minimizes the time required to obtain key decision-support estimates
• Automates meteorological data collection from multiple sites

The Architecture:

CAPARS contains several independent systems:

A meteorological data system

• Automatically obtains, processes, quality checks, and stores all meteorological data that is available

A user interface

• Allows users to specify the characteristics of a simulated release

An atmospheric dispersion model with a health-effects subcomponent

• Converts concentration-based exposure projections into health-based consequences

A mapping system

• Uses geographical information system (GIS) displays of projected plumes and impacted features
• Shows a three-dimensional, complex-terrain wind field that changes over time and space for improved dispersion accuracy
• Displays independently moving, growing, and depositing puffs

CAPARS is the result of a technology transfer from the U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) Rocky Flats Plant to AlphaTRAC, Inc. AlphaTRAC enhanced the original system, which provided continuous emergency response atmospheric modeling support, into the current CAPARS system. We have added significant new features, capabilities, data sets, and products while maintaining the technological basis and quality of the original system.

For more information, download the CAPARS document overview:

CAPARS Plume Prediction Document