HYSPLIT PC – Exit Code 900 with GDAS and RP.gbl Files (Meteorological Input Format Issue)

[adeo]

Dear All,

I’m running HYSPLIT on Windows for trajectory analysis across six sites. I’ve developed an R-based automation script that generates CONTROL files and calls hyts_std.exe to run simulations when the meteorological files are correctly formatted.

Meteorological File Types Used:
Weekly GDAS files (e.g., gdas1.aug20.w3) — originally used, but not all weeks are available for my study period.
Monthly .gbl files (e.g., RP202008.gbl) — downloaded to fill gaps, assumed to be in GRIB or another structured format.

Issue:
I have used two types of meteorological input files in my HYSPLIT setup: Weekly GDAS files (e.g., gdas1.aug20.w3) & Monthly .gbl files (e.g., RP202008.gbl). In both cases, HYSPLIT fails to run and returns exit code 900, which indicates the meteorological file cannot be read or is in an unsupported format. The CONTROL files are automatically generated by my R script, are correctly structured, and point to the respective met files in C:\hysplit\meteo. I have reviewed the CONTROL syntax and file paths, and they conform to HYSPLIT standards.

I inspected the .gbl files — they contain structured binary data but appear to be in a format other than ARL (likely GRIB or custom).

My Setup:
OS: Windows 10
HYSPLIT location: C:\hysplit\
Executable: C:\hysplit\exec\hyts_std.exe
CONTROL files: auto-generated via R and verified
Met input folder: contains both GDAS and RP*.gbl files
All .gbl runs fail with exit code 900

Request for Support:
Are .gbl (RP*) files directly compatible with hyts_std.exe, or must they be converted?
Can you provide the correct usage or configuration for hysplit_data2arl if conversion is needed?
Is there an official NOAA source to download full-year weekly ARL-format GDAS files for 2020–2021?
Your support would be appreciated.

[sonny.zinn]

The NCEP/NCAR reanalysis files (R*.gbl) are already in the ARL format and they are readily usable with HYSPLIT. No conversion is required. To diagnose the issue you reported, could you post SETUP.CFG, CONTROL, and MESSAGE files from your failed trajectory run?

ARL has a GDAS one-degree archive. Please refer to https://www.ready.noaa.gov/archives.php.

[adeo]

Thanks, finally resolved.

[sonny.zinn]

Your CONTROL files appear to be missing a meteorological data directory. In addition, the directory of trajectory output file must end with the appropriate slash. Please see https://www.ready.noaa.gov/hysplitusersguide/S262.htm for the Trajectory CONTROL file format and ensure your CONTROL files follow the format.