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| The Korean Meteorological Administration is to host a new International Coordination Office of a project which aims to improve predictions at sub-seasonal to seasonal timescales. Improved weather-to-climate forecasts promise to be of significant social and economic value, especially in agriculture and food security, water resources management, transportation and tourism to just name a few applications.
A memorandum of understanding on the establishment of the office, to be based on Jeju island, was signed by World Meteorological Organization Secretary-General Michel Jarraud and Lee Ilsoo, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Korea to WMO.
05/21/2013 03:28 PM |
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| WMO is sponsoring a workshop on climate monitoring, including the implementation of Climate Watch systems for Arab countries in West Asia.
The meeting in Amman, Jordan, 27-30 May, is organized by the Jordan Meteorological Department. It will consider how to implement Climate Watch systems in the region by maximizing existing infrastructure and expertise.
Given that extreme climate events have a negative impact on the well-being of populations andsustainable development, there is a need to improve climate risk management capabilities. This necessitates an efficient extreme weather and climate warning system, based on the continuous monitoring and forecasting of climate anomalies, is such a warning system.
05/21/2013 03:27 PM |
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| Disaster risk reduction is at the core of the mission of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs,). as over 90% of disasters are linked to weather, climate- and water-related hazards. Climate change is expected to lead to an increase in the intensity and frequency of some of these hazards. WMO is therefore an active participant in the Global Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction 19 to 23 May 2013.
About 4,600 representatives from governments, civil society and the private sector are expected to attend the Global Platform "Invest Today for a safer tomorrow: Resilient People Resilient Planet." The event is organized by the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction. Discussions will focus on a follow-up action plan to the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) 2005-2015, which is a global initiative to make the world safer from natural hazards.
05/21/2013 03:27 PM |
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| The Executive Council of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) opened its annual meeting 15 May to review progress and challenges in providing weather, climate and water services to meet the growing needs of society. The development of cyclonic storm Mahasen, which could potentially impact more than 8 million people in the Bay of Bengal, underlined the vital role of meteorological warnings to protect lives and property.
Enhanced disaster risk reduction, improved quality and use of tropical cyclone warnings and public weather service delivery are on the agenda of the Executive Council.
05/21/2013 03:26 PM |
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| Observed concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere have exceeded the symbolic 400 parts per million (ppm) threshold at several stations of the World Meteorological Organization's Global Atmosphere Watch network. This is a wakeup call about the constantly rising levels of this greenhouse gas, which is released into the atmosphere by fossil fuel burning and other human activities and is the main driver of climate change. Carbon dioxide remains in the atmosphere for thousands of years, trapping heat and causing our planet to warm further, impacting on all aspects of life on earth.
On May 9, 2013, the daily mean concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of Mauna Loa, Hawaii, recorded a reading of 400.03 ppm, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Mauna Loa is the oldest continuous atmospheric measurement station in the world and so is widely regarded as a benchmark site in the Global Atmosphere Watch.
Several other Global Atmosphere Watch stations have also reported CO2 concentrations exceeding the 400 ppm threshold during the seasonal maximum. This occurs early in the northern hemisphere spring before vegetation growth absorbs CO2.
05/14/2013 11:51 AM |
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| As the world's climate continues to change, hazards to human health are increasing. The Atlas of Health and Climate, published jointly by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), illustrates some of the most pressing current and emerging challenges. Droughts, floods and cyclones affect the health of millions of people each year. Climate variability and extreme conditions such as floods can also trigger epidemics of diseases such as diarrhoea, malaria, dengue and meningitis, which cause death and suffering for many millions more. The Atlas gives practical examples of how the use of weather and climate information can protect public health. The Atlas, which has received widespread acclaim, is now available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.
04/30/2013 04:03 PM |
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| Two new Global Information System Centres have become operational under the World Meteorological Organization Information System which aims to improve and expand the current exchange of weather, climate and water data.
Global Information System Centres Seoul (Republic of Korea) and Melbourne (Australia) became operational 29 March and 16 April 2013 respectively. They join Beijing (China); Exeter (UK), Offenbach (Germany), Tokyo (Japan), and Toulouse (France), which became operational in 2012.
The WMO Information System makes it easier to find and use meteorological observations and products and to share them with a wide variety of stakeholders such as the research and disaster risk reduction communities. Successfully receiving, transmitting and handling weather, climate and environmental information is vital for sustainable economic development.
04/16/2013 04:03 PM |
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| The World Meteorological Organization's Hurricane Committee has agreed to changes in its hurricane and tropical storm watch and warning system to take into account lessons learned from Sandy - which has now been retired from the official rotating list of names because of the devastation caused in October 2012. Sandy will be replaced by Sara.
The Hurricane Committee adopted a proposal from its Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre (RSMC) in Miami to broaden hurricane and tropical storm watch and warning definitions to allow these watches and warnings to remain in effect after a tropical cyclone becomes post-tropical, when such a storm poses a significant threat to life and property.
In future, the RSMC Miami will ensure a continuity of service by continuing to issue advisories during the post-tropical stage, when a storm poses a significant threat to life and property.
These changes were motivated by the special challenges posed by Hurricane Sandy, which evolved from a hurricane to a post-tropical cyclone prior to reaching the coast of the United States of America. They will be incorporated into the Operational Plan of the Hurricane Committee of WMO Regional Association IV (North and Central America and the Caribbean).
04/15/2013 05:47 PM |
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| WMO is sponsoring a workshop on climate monitoring, including the implementation of Climate Watch systems in Africa, with a special focus on Eastern and Southern Africa.
The meeting in Pretoria, South Africa, 15-18 April, is organized by the South African Weather Service. It will consider how to implement Climate Watch systems in the region by maximizing existing infrastructure and expertise.
Given that extreme climate events have a negative impact on the well-being of populations and sustainable development, there is a need to improve climate risk management capabilities. This necessitates an efficient extreme weather and climate warning system, based on the continuous monitoring and forecasting of climate anomalies, is such a warning system.
04/15/2013 05:46 PM |
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| An agreement between the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and The Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS) will support up to ten PhD fellowships per year focused on weather, climate and water-related hazards.
The partnership joins WMO and TWAS in a venture to build science capacity in least-developed and developing nations that are vulnerable to weather-related risks and the effects of climate variability and change.
"The ever evolving need for expertise in weather, climate and water related sciences require more resources and broader partnerships to nurture young scientists. The agreement between WMO and TWAS will help build capacity in the human resources we need to face current and future global challenges," said WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud,
"Across the developing world, there is a critical need for expertise in a wide range of climate-related subjects," said Romain Murenzi, executive director of TWAS. "Through this agreement, we are pleased to strengthen our collaboration with WMO and start the process of providing high-quality training opportunities to give developing countries the chance to build their own indigenous scientific capacity."
03/28/2013 10:09 AM |
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