Operator Guide

Start Here

• Use the map first. World zoom is a triage surface, not a complete traffic plot.
• Read the header before chasing detail: mode, last update, next refresh, and access state tell you how much to trust the current surface.
• Open Layers when a source matters. Dense live layers are intentionally suppressed at low zoom to keep the map legible and fast.

Read State Correctly

• Live: the latest ingest succeeded and the source is updating normally.
• Degraded: the source answered, but quality, completeness, or subtype fidelity fell.
• Stale: old or cached data is still being shown so the picture stays usable, but it should not be treated as fresh.
• Tier-limited: the layer or feature exists, but the current access tier is intentionally capped.

Do not treat an empty layer as proof of absence until you have checked zoom, time window, and source health.

Cadence Matters

• The browser refreshes on a 30 second loop, but upstream sources do not all recollect every 30 seconds.
• Fast sources such as AIS, OpenSky, NOTAM, and SWPC run on a 5 minute collector cadence.
• The supplemental vessel and aircraft entity feed also refreshes every 5 minutes.
• Many environmental and advisory sources run on 15 to 60 minute cadences because the upstream itself does not change faster than that.
• Some reference or orbital-context sources update every 4, 6, or 24 hours.

The practical rule is simple: a fresh browser refresh does not guarantee a fresh upstream collection. Read the source state before treating absence or persistence as signal.

Tracked Aircraft Workflow

• Watch the aircraft banner or alert tables for a tracked-aircraft hit.
• Click the banner or the marker to open the right-side detail panel.
• Use the detail panel to verify callsign, registration, origin, timing, and geometry before reacting to the map icon alone.
• If the track matters, use the track button in detail to pull history instead of relying on one state vector.

Convergence Zones

• Convergence is a triage layer. It ranks where multiple independent signals overlap.
• Use the score to decide where to look first, not as a standalone verdict.
• Read the popup for evidence families, contributor weights, and 72-hour change.
• If a zone looks empty at world zoom, drill in. Lower-priority cells are hidden until the view is tight enough to stay readable.

Proximity Query and Area Report

• Right-click any map point to open a radius query.
• Use Proximity Query to rank nearby signals, infrastructure, and corroborating context by distance.
• Use Area Intelligence Report when you need a deterministic plain-text sitrep for a fixed circle.
• The highlighted circle is part of the workflow. Verify the area before copying the output.

Adaptive Mode

Phantom Tide exposes its interaction mode in the Session panel. Only help density, shorthand, and guidance emphasis adapt automatically.

• Teach / tutorial: full prompts and explicit guidance stay on.
• Deep / analytical: denser context, fewer reminders, more investigative framing.
• Fast / browsing: shorthand copy and keyboard cues take priority.

Map controls, source colors, severity meaning, and click paths stay fixed for trust and muscle memory. You can lock or reset the current mode at any time.

Access and Session Memory

• Starter access is anonymous and intentionally limited to keep the live surface readable.
• Expanded access is browser-session based. If a feature is locked, the Access panel will say so explicitly.
• Session memory is local-only and dialogic. If Phantom Tide remembers a working style, it asks before reusing it.

Keyboard and Reversible Actions

• ? opens the in-app guide and shortcut sheet.
• Escape closes drawers, dialogs, and menus.
• t toggles relative and UTC time.
• i opens or closes the intel briefings.
• j and k move through the live briefing rows without changing map or layer state.
• Enter opens the current briefing row in the Detail panel.
• f focuses the map on the current row or selected signal.
• Compact-screen controls: [ opens Layers, ] opens Detail.

Three Good Questions

• Which signals are overlapping that should not overlap?
• Which sources disagree about location, timing, or presence?
• What is the freshest trustworthy path to a plain-language sitrep?