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Last updated: 2 November 2006 |
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32 people die in
Turkey floods Flooding triggered by torrential rains in south-east Turkey has taken the lives of at least 32 people over the past two days according to authorities. Seven of the victims were children under the age of five while dozens of other people have been reported missing. Flooding has also occurred in other parts of the country: roads in coastal areas have been closed and homes evacuated in Istanbul. The Turkish National Meteorological Service is predicting more precipitation (both rain and snow) for the affected region–clearing by Monday. |
Damage caused by flooding
in Mersin, southern Turkey
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Rare snow for
south-east Australia Snow fell in Bicheno, Tasmania, for the first time in over 30 years on Saturday, with overnight temperatures dropping to 2°C (average 8-10°C). The Australian states of New South Wales, Victoria and capital city Canberra also witnessed snow flurries which came in wake of a particularly warm October for the region and the hottest on record for Canberra. |
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WMO ushers in new training era with overwhelming Member
participation Participation
at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) High Profile Training Event (HPTE)
for satellite meteorology has surpassed all expectations. In
the first week alone, more than 2 000 participants in over 100 WMO Member
countries received face-to-face lectures and training in real-time via the
Internet. The
number of lecture participants is expected to exceed 4 000 by the end of the
two-week event. Employing
the Virtual Laboratory (VL) for Education and Training in Satellite Meteorology
Training, HPTE focuses on the use of data and products from meteorological and
environmental satellites. Applications include: weather forecasting,
climate change monitoring, maritime safety as well as natural disaster
prevention and mitigation. Regional face-to-face training activities are
being carried out in the VL Centres of Excellence in Melbourne, Australia,
and Nanjing, China; other participating VL Centres of Excellence include Brazil,
Costa Rica, Niamey and Oman. The EUMETSAT User Form held in Maputo, Mozambique, has provided the opportunity for representatives from 50 African countries, the African Union, African regional economic groupings, ACMAD and AGHRYMET to receive presentations, locally from EUMETSAT experts as well as key lecturers from the Bureau of Meteorology Training Center (Australia) via the VISITView Internet-based training tool. HPTE ends 28 October. For more information: http://www.wmo.int/web/sat/satsun.html and Info Note No. 30 |
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7th
EUMETSAT User Forum in Africa and GMES-Africa On the occasion of the 7th EUMETSAT User Forum in Africa, the MAPUTO declaration was signed on 15 October 2006 by the Commission of the African Union, the Secretariat of African, Caribbean and Pacific group of states, high-level representatives of all African sub-regional organizations, in presence of the Secretary-General of WMO, of representatives of EUMETSAT, of the European Union and of the government of Mozambique. The declaration calls upon an extension of the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) to Africa, to be funded within the 10th European Development Fund (EDF10). |
(from left to right): Mr Filipe Lucio, Director of INAM, Mozambique, Mr A. Guebuza, President of the Republic of Mozambique, Mrs R. Kurwijila, Commission of the African Union, Mr Paul Counet, EUMETSAT and Mr Michel Jarraud, WMIO Secretary-General |
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METOP launch (updated on 25 October) The EUMETSAT METOP-A spacecraft was launched from Baikonur, Kazakhstan, on 19 October 2006 at 16:28 UTC and handed over to EUMETSAT operations team on 22 October. METOP-A is the first of a series of three polar-orbiting meteorological satellites to be operated by EUMETSAT over the next 15 years on a mid-morning orbit, crossing the equator southwards at 09h30 (Local Solar Time), as part of the NOAA-EUMETSAT Initial Joint Polar System. Its payload includes eight different instruments for atmospheric sounding and various meteorological and environmental applications, namely the prototype Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI). |
First METOP image over
Europe (25 October) |
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Heavy storms in Greece (posted on 23 October) Severe storms caused major disruption to many southern parts of Greece on Saturday afternoon, just days after a separate line of storms forced authorities to declare a state of emergency elsewhere in the region. Around 30 homes were flooded in the southern Peloponnese and several occupants had to be rescued by firemen. Three cars were swept away by torrents, while landslides halted road traffic in parts of the region. |
Flood damaged cars lay on
the shore in Almirida, near Hania port on Crete island |
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Quake sparks
tsunami warning for New Britain A powerful undersea earthquake off the Papua New Guinea island of New Britain triggered warnings of a potential local tsunami on 17 October. Reports of any damage or casualties have yet to emerge. Experts measured the earthquake at 6.5 on the Richter Scale. It struck some 229 km south-west of Rabaul, the island capital. |
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No tsunami from
Hawaii earthquake An earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter Scale shook Hawaii on Sunday. Electricity was cut in some areas but there were no deaths or injuries. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the quake was not strong enough to trigger a tsunami warning. |
(Source: Pacific Tsunami Warning Center)
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Locust alert for
north-west Africa The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has warned countries in north-west Africa against potential locust swarms. FAO says eggs from the insects found in Mauritania are expected to hatch within the next 10 days. The country suffered devastation to crops and vegetation in wake of a massive locust swarm in 2004. FAO has also alerted Algeria, Mali, Morocco and Senegal to monitor and prepare for any outbreaks.The World Meteorological Organization and FAO have held joint workshops to coordinate weather forecasts from National Meteorological and Hydrological Services with locust control centres. Weather patterns can have a significant influence on how locust swarms migrate.See also: http://www.fao.org/ag/locusts |
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Worst floods in a
decade hit Myanmar and Thailand Monsoon flooding – the worst in a decade – has taken the lives of 13 people in Myanmar over the past few days and 39 in Thailand since the end of August according to authorities. In Thailand, an estimated 230 000 people have fallen ill from water-borne diseases and 262 000 hectares of agricultural land ruined. Experts say water levels in the Chao Phraya River are at their highest in 60 years and could threaten Bangkok which has already experienced local flooding and heavy rainfall. Officials have been building sandbag and concrete defences along city centre river banks while diverting the flow into rice fields upstream near the ancient city of Ayutthaya. The Meteorological Department has forecast that rainfall will decrease in the north, north-east, east, and central regions, but expect more heavy precipitation in the south particularly, the upper south. Torrential downpours and flashfloods are predicted for Phetchaburi, Prachuap Khiri Khan and Chumphon. See also: http://www.tmd.go.th/index_eng.php |
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Link between Sahara dust and
hurricane activity Researchers in the United States have
discovered that thick clouds of dust that periodically rise up from the Sahara
desert affect hurricane activity in the Atlantic Ocean. Fewer Atlantic hurricanes spawned in years
featuring strong dust storms in the Sahara which raises the possibility that
they could help reduce tropical cyclone activity. More work needs to be carried out but the
researchers say that, if they could proved that dust storms helped suppress the
development of hurricanes, weather forecasters could eventually track
atmospheric dust and factor it into their forecasts. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration funded the research, which has been published in the scientific
journal Geophysical Research Letters. |
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Weather Risk Management E-
Symposium (live and online) (posted on 10 October) Mr Michel Jarraud, Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), will be giving the keynote speech at the Weather Risk E-Symposium on 19 October. The live interactive Internet event is aimed at giving participants from all over the world the chance to discuss and learn more about weather, climate and water services; the risks posed by natural hazards and climate change and how to prepare for and mitigate them. Mr Jarraud will give the opening address at 7.10 a.m. GMT live from his office in Geneva. Dr Maryam Golnaraghi, Chief of WMO’s Natural Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Programme, will also participate in online discussions for one hour. The event is hosted by Energy Risk magazine, co-sponsored by Swiss Re and in partnership with Weather Risk Management Association. For more information and free registration, please see: http://www.weatherrisk.e-symposium.com |
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Harsh winter in store for earthquake-affected
areas in Pakistan A
preliminary winter outlook from the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) for
earthquake-affected areas of Pakistan predicts that the coming winter will be
severe with average temperatures likely to be colder than normal. The
forecast has been made according to prevailing regional and global conditions,
which also indicate that winter in Pakistan will arrive about 1-2 weeks earlier
than normal. Lowest
night temperatures are expected to range between –2
to –7°C in the plain areas. In
December, January and February, day temperatures are likely to remain several
degrees below freezing especially in mountainous regions with minimum
temperatures (night) sometimes as low as –15° C. Winter
in Pakistan generally begins at the end of November and lasts until the end of
February. The earthquake struck
near Muzafarrabad on 8 October 2005, killing
over 73 000 people. Some 3.5 million people were left homeless. An estimated 1.8
million survivors are living in makeshift accommodation; around 400 000 are
considered to be highly vulnerable as winter approaches. For more information, see: http://www.pakmet.com.pk |
School in Muzaffarabad |
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International Media North South Festival (Geneva, Switzerland) The WMO Secretary-General,
Mr Michel Jarraud, will address the official opening of
the Festival international Médias Nord Sud, a
major annual event in Geneva, which will take place from 11 to 14 October.
The Festival this year will focus on climate change and the inequalities
of north-south communities when faced with natural disasters. Entry to the festival is free and open to the public. It includes projections of documentaries, exhibitions, public presentations, TV and radio shows and a film documentary competition. WMO experts will also participate in televised round tables on specific climate-related topics. Among them are Mr Alioune Ndiaye and Dr Mannava V. K. Sivakumar, on "Desertification" (Thursday 12 October 2006 1.00 -2.00 pm); and Dr Eduard Sarukhanian, "North Pole" (Friday 13 October 2006, 2.00-4.30 pm). For more information, see: http://www.nordsud.ch |
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2006 Antarctic
ozone hole is most serious on record This year’s hole in the Antarctic ozone layer was the most serious on record exceeding that of 2000. Not only was it the largest in surface area (matching 2000) but also suffered the most mass deficit, meaning that there was less ozone over the Antarctic than ever previously measured. Measurements were taken from instruments on both NASA and European Space Agency (ESA) satellites. These are validated by surface based observations of the WMO Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) ozone network. Each agency uses different instruments hence the slightly different values. NASA instruments showed that, on 25 September 2006, the area of the hole reached 29.5 million km2, compared to 29.4 million km2 reached in September 2000. According to ESA, the ozone hole area reached 28.0 million km2 on 25 September 2006, very close to the maximum in 2000, which peaked at 28.4 million km2 The ozone mass deficit in 2006 was measured at 39.8 megatonnes on 1 October, higher than in 2000, which peaked at 39.6 megatonnes on 29 September. Mass deficit is the amount of ozone missing from a vertical column of air compared to a baseline measured many decades earlier before severe ozone depletion appeared.This year’s hole was caused by the continuing presence of peak levels of ozone destroying substances in the atmosphere combined with a particularly cold stratospheric winter. |
2006 ozone hole as
measured by the SCIAMACHY instrument onboard Envisat |
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Last month hottest
September on record in the United Kingdom According to figures from the Met Office, UK, last month was
the warmest September on record in the United Kingdom. The daily mean of 15.4°C was 3.1°
above the long-term average and smashed the previous record of 14.7° set in
1949. |
(credit: FreeFoto.com) |
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Nigerian damburst Torrential rain caused a dam to burst in the Nigerian state of Zamfara on 30 September. State officials say thousands have been made homeless. The reservoir behind the dam provided the main supply of drinking water to the state capital Gusau. |
(Source: BBC News) |
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Locust swarm infests
Mexico Swarms of locusts have been infesting the Mexican resort of Cancun for several weeks. The insects have already devoured an estimated 1 000 ha of farmland. Local officials using motorized pesticide pumps have been mobilized to tackle the problem, spraying at night when the locusts are resting in fields. Locust numbers in the region have inflated in recent weeks, partly due to hot, calm conditions with few windy storms that help keep swarms in check. |
(Source: National Geographic) |
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Slovenia to host
Drought Management Centre for South-Eastern Europe Slovenia has been selected to host the new Drought Management Centre for South-Eastern Europe. The decision was made at a meeting hosted by WMO in Geneva with the Secretariat of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Slovenia’s proposal gained two-thirds of the vote by the 11 countries of South-Eastern Europe. A working meeting with technical experts from Slovenia will be held at WMO Headquarters in November 2006 to discuss follow-up actions required for the Centre's rapid establishment. |
Drought in South-Eastern Europe |
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Students
on Ice In the context of the International Polar Year (IPY) 2007-2009, Students on Ice has scheduled nine Arctic and Antarctic. Endorsed by the International Polar Year Joint Committee, these expeditions will provide once-in-a-lifetime opportunities for over 500 students to explore the polar regions. For more information, see: http://www.studentsonice.com/ |
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Inauguration of Jason-2 ground
station The ground station for the new ocean observing satellite Jason-2 was officially inaugurated in Usingen, Germany, today. The ground station is an important part of the contribution of EUMETSAT (the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites) to the Ocean Surface Topography mission—a joint cooperative effort of the French Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). NOAA and EUMETSAT will be responsible for operating the system and for the near-real-time product distribution. CNES and NASA are the developing agencies for the Jason-2 satellite. Jason-2 is scheduled for launch in June 2008. For more information, see: http://www.eumetsat.int/Home/Main/Media/Press_Releases/028593?l=en |
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El Niño update Climate patterns across the equatorial Pacific over the last 1-2 months have developed a notable tendency toward El Niño conditions. The development of a weak-to-moderate basin-wide El Niño is now likely. Such an event would likely persist into early 2007, although there is a small possibility that the event could dissipate in the next couple of months. In view of the evolving situation, additional caution is required in forming expectations about impacts in those regions typically affected by El Niño events. The situation is expected to become clearer in the next 1-2 months. For the full update, see: El Niño/La Niña Update (September 2006) (French, Spanish) |
Observed Sea Surface
Temperature (°C) on 20 September 2006 |
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Third
International Weather Forum The Third International Weather Forum is being organized by the French Meteorological Society in Ajaccio, Corsica, from 9 to 15 October 2006. The accent will be on climate change and environmental issues. Two debates will be organized for the public: "The impact of climate change in Corsica" and "The challenge for Earth". On 13 and 14 October, professionals in the field can participate in four round-table sessions to discuss the climate situation and how best to keep the public informed. For more information, see: www.smf.asso.fr/fim.html |
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2006 Antarctic
ozone hole nears previous record levels The latest WMO Antarctic Ozone Bulletin, issued today, says that the current hole in the ozone layer over the region has exceeded that of last year, and is approaching those of 2003 and 2000, respectively the second largest and largest on record. For more information, see:web/arep/ozone.html
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The ozone layer over the South Pole on
19 September 2006 |
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Least
developed countries The Secretary-General of WMO, Mr Michel Jarraud, has warned that failure to invest adequately in the National Meteorological and Hydrological Services of Least Developed Countries (LDCs) would undermine their efforts to reduce vulnerability to climate risks such as tropical cyclones, floods and drought and their fight against poverty. Weather-, climate- and water-related disasters can wipe out up to 15% of an LDC’s Gross Domestic Product and overwhelm economies but every dollar invested in NMHSs brings, on average, a 10-fold return. The Secretary-General made a keynote presentation at United Nations Headquarters in New York on Wednesday at the Special Event on Weather, Climate and Water Services for Development and Disaster Mitigation in LDCs. |
(source: UNCTAD) |
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17th World Conference on
Disaster Management (posted on 14 September) The 17th World Conference on Disaster Management (Emergency Management and Business Continuity Working Together) will be held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Toronto, Canada, from 11 to 18 July 2007. For more information, see: http://www.wdcm/org/ |
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Weather forecasts
in Spanish for 1 112 cities The National Institute of Meteorology of Spain (INM) and WMO launched a Spanish-language website yesterday, providing access to the latest official weather forecasts for 1 112 cities in 112 countries issued by their National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs). Developed and operated the INM under the auspices of WMO, the Website is the Spanish version of the World Weather Information Service (WWIS) Website created by the Hong Kong Observatory, China, on behalf of WMO. Climatological data are also given for 1 154 cities in 158 countries. See: http://wwis.inm.es |
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Bilis
and Saomai China was struck by two devastating
typhoons, Bilis and Saomai, in July and August this year. An
analysis of the meteorological factors which made the two typhoons so
destructive has been made by Duan Yihong of the National Meteorological Centre,
China Meteorological Administration. |
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Iraqi meteorologists trained
in Jordan The Jordan Meteorological Department has organized two intensive training events for some 30 meteorologists from the Iraq Meteorological Organization. Most of the trainees were young graduates with little or no operational experience in meteorology who will be operating aeronautical meteorological offices. They received theoretical and practical training in various topics with emphasis on aviation meteorology. The training was carried out at the Meteorological Training Centre and at the National Weather Forecasting Centre in Amman, Jordan. These events support the efforts of the Iraq Meteorological Organization to rebuild its capacity and rehabilitate its human resources through bilateral agreements and collaboration with neighbouring and other WMO Members.. |
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Ozone depletion—latest According to the the WMO/UNEP Scientific Assessment of Ozone Depletion: 2006, the ozone layer over mid-latitudes (30°-60°N and S) should recover by 2049, five years later than anticipated by the previous assessment (2002). Ozone over the Antarctic should recover by 2065, 15 years later than earlier predictions. Because of special conditions within the Antarctic vortex (a natural cyclone of super-cold, super-fast winds), the Antarctic ozone hole is expected to recur regularly for another two decades. The later projected date of recovery over mid-latitudes is primarily the result of upward revisions in the amounts of certain chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) gases now contained in refrigerators and other equipment, from which much of both types will eventually be released. Higher estimates of future production levels of a CFC substitute that, although much safer, still causes some depletion) is another factor. Recovery of the Antarctic ozone layer will
take place later than previously calculated due to the greater age of air in
that region. This essentially means that ozone-depleting molecules take longer
to reach (and also dissipate from) the stratsophere, a factor not previously
taken into account. http://www.wmo.int/web/arep/reports/ozone_2006/ozone_asst_report.html |
The ozone layer over the South Pole on 14 August 2006 (Image: NASA) |
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Revised hurricane season forecast
The United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has fine-tuned its predictions for this year’s tropical cyclone season in the Atlantic and Caribbean. NOAA forecasters are now expecting between seven and nine hurricanes, with three or four developing into major ones. At the beginning of the season, NOAA predicted 13-16 named storms with eight to 10 as hurricanes and four to six as major events. However, officials pointed out that this year is still likely to be more active than average owing to warm sea-surface temperatures and favourable wind patterns. The season officially ends 30 November though tropical cyclones have been known to develop in the region after that date. The last hurricane of the 2005 season developed on 30 December and persisted until 6 January 2006. Also during last year’s record hurricane season, nine storms had already been named by 8 August compared to this year’s figure of three. |
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Website
for safety at sea The
operational official Website of the Joint WMO/IOC Commission for Oceanography
and Marine Meteorology provides real-time access to marine weather information (e.g. movement of
cyclones) produced under the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System:
http://weather.gmdss.org. See also WMO
Bulletin 53 (2) or online (Word version) |
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