Installing HYSPLIT on a Windows PC

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The HYSPLIT installation file contains all the executables, documentation, and some test meteorological data. The graphical user interface requires Tcl/Tk, Ghostscript utilities, and ImageMagick. Optional programs such as Google Earth and ArcExplorer may be installed if needed.

  1. Tcl/Tk Graphical User Interface

    The Tcl/Tk script interpreter is required to run the HYSPLIT GUI. Further, various computations can be automated through the use of Tcl scripts. Install the software to the suggested default directory.


  2. Postscript Converter

    The HYSPLIT trajectory and concentration display programs create high resolution publication quality graphics files in Postscript format. These can be printed directly on any Postscript printer, viewed on the PC display monitor, or printed on any non-Postscript printer if Ghostscript has been installed. Install the software to the suggested default directories.


  3. Postscript Viewer

    Ghostscript only provides for command line options. To more easily view and print Postscript files in a Windows environment, install Ghostview to the suggested default directories.


  4. ImageMagick File Converter

    The GUI has a built in link that permits the conversion of the Postscript graphics output file to most other graphical formats. This capability is enabled through the installation of ImageMagick, which requires the prior installation of Ghostscript to be able to read the Postscript files. Install the software to the suggested default directory.


  5. Windows HYSPLIT Installation

    The HYSPLIT PC installation simply requires running the self-installing executable. You will be prompted for a default installation directory, the suggested default is c:\hysplit4. If installation to another directory name is required, avoid directories with embedded spaces because many programs in the HYSPLIT system use the space as a file name delimiter. A desktop icon and quick-start drop down menu will be installed. If you do not want to install on top of an existing version, it is best to rename the old \hysplit4 directory before proceeding. Note that the registered version is identical to the trial version in all respects except that the dispersion model (for concentration predictions) cannot be run using forecast data with the trial version. Install the 64-bit version if you are expecting to read and write files larger than 2 GB (not common).



  6. Optional ArcExplorer GIS Viewer

    The GUI includes an option to convert various graphical products to the ESRI shapefile format. These shapefiles can then be imported and viewed in ArcExplorer. It is then possible to overlay trajectories, meteorological data, and concentration contours, all on the same map background using ESRI GIS software. Note that administrator access is usually required to install this program. HYSPLIT also permits the use of shapefiles (.shp only) in defining the map background layers in the existing trajectory and concentration plotting programs.


  7. Optional Google Earth Viewer

    HYSPLIT trajectory and concentration output files can be converted to a format that is compatible for display with Google Earth. The conversion results in zip file (.kmz) that contains all the files required by Google Earth. A double-click on the "kmz" file will open Google Earth and it will automatically zoom to the display. Google Earth gives the best results for computers connected to the Internet, permitting access to its on-line geographic database.



  8. Optional Tutorial Tips

    There are two things that you can do to configure Windows to make it a little easier to follow along with some of the tutorial examples. One is to put a short-cut link to Notepad on the desktop so that files without text extensions can easily be opened and viewed. Open the Windows Start Menu, open All Programs, Accessories, and find and right-click on Notepad, and select Send to, Desktop (create shortcut).

    The second, if File Explorer is not already configured to view all file extensions, open the File Menu in the Control Panel, and uncheck the box for Hide extensions for known file types.