A new WMO report has laid bare the importance of investing in weather services in the face of climate change even though the availability of such services varies hugely globally.
The State of Climate Services report gives an overview of current weather and climate services around the world. Focusing mainly on agriculture and food security, the report looked at climate services relevant to these two areas such as seasonal forecasts, drought advisories and fire danger indices.
The report noted that populations living with food insecurity were among the most vulnerable to the ill effects of climate change, with more than 80% of those who live in conditions of food insecurity also living in environments exposed to the kind of extreme weather events likely to become more common with climate change.
Not only will 2019 go down as one of the hottest years on record but it also marks the end of a decade of “exceptional global heat”, according to the WMO.
So far the average global temperature this year has been about 1.1°C above the pre-industrial period putting 2019 on course to be the second or third warmest year on record.
In its provisional statement on the State of the Global Climate, the WMO noted that the unprecedented warming is part of a decade-long trend with average temperatures for the 10-year period from 2010-2019 almost certain to be the highest ever recorded.
Scientists in California have successfully conducted an experiment showing how networks of undersea fiber-optic cables can be used to detect seismic activity, including earthquakes.
In a paper published in the journal Science, the research team described how they were able to turn about 12 miles of undersea cable in California’s Monterey Bay into the equivalent of 10,000 seismic stations.
During their four-day experiment the cables detected a 3.5 magnitude quake and seismic scattering from underwater fault zones. The researchers hope that the experiment could lay the groundwork for the use of fiber-optic cables for seismic detection around the world.
Researchers have discovered a previously unlooked-for factor in the formation of air particles that they say could make forecasting of haze more accurate.
The research team led by University of Pennsylvania scientists studied a band of particles known as PM10 and PM2.5, their names referring to their dimension in micrometers.
These particles can contribute to haze, clouds and fog and also pose a health risk if inhaled. The researchers found that the formation of PM10s and PM2.5s can be reduced by alcohols in the atmosphere.
Previously alcohols were overlooked as a factor because they are known to interact weakly with other compounds.
Weather data company Weather Source has teamed up with Amazon to offer its weather and climate data to customers of the online retailer’s cloud computing service.
Under the deal Weather Source is making its OnPoint Weather system available in the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Data Exchange, a new service that allows AWS customers access to third-party data in the cloud.
OnPoint Weather, which relies on a database of historical weather data dating back nearly 20 years and current observations taken from nearly 2,000,000 global points, allows users to access weather data at hyper-local resolutions.
The system uses deep problem-solving methods on raw weather data taken from satellites, radar, weather stations, weather models, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, sensors and other sources to create a dataset designed for commercial use in business analytics or for machine learning applications.
A new generation of drone boats powered by renewable energy could help revolutionize the forecasting of ocean-related weather.
A number of companies have begun producing ocean-going prototypes including the Canadian startup Open Ocean Robotics. The startup’s ocean drones can stay at sea for up to a year, continuously collecting data via onboard sensors that include 360° cameras and lidar.
The data can be relayed to the user in real time via satellite. According to Open Ocean Robotics its vessels could easily be fitted out with sensors to measure air temperature, windspeed, barometric pressure and wind direction for marine weather forecasting.
ClimaCell, a provider of MicroWeather forecasts, has announced the launch of an initiative to tackle one of the root causes of global poverty: lack of access to reliable localized weather information.
ClimaCell has established a new, independent non-profit organization that focus on saving and transforming lives by bringing MicroWeather Solutions to areas currently underserved by traditional means.
Beginning in East Africa and working together with local governments, NGOs and local communities, ClimaCell’s initiative aims to facilitate the rapid and collaborative implementation of novel technological approaches, and adoption of critical weather warnings and insights. To save lives, the initiative’s impact areas will focus on zero hunger, infectious disease eradication, and early warnings.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the secretariat of the UN Framework Convention for Climate Change have signed agreements with the Global Energy Interconnection Development and Cooperation Organization (GEIDCO) to promote efficient, resilient and renewable energy generation and use.
The agreement will enable WMO to expand the provision of climate services for energy as a contribution to the implementation of the Global Framework for Climate Services. The occasion for the signing was the release of several reports at COP25 focused on implementation of renewable energy systems on a scale and scope sufficient to achieve the temperature target of the Paris Agreement.
