Weather watchers' role in protecting life and property honored on March 23

On March 23, the world will take a closer look at meteorology as a means of protecting life and property, when it marks World Meteorological.

 

For this year's observance of the occasion, the theme will be "Watching the weather to protect life and property," the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said.

 

"Weather extremes have a tremendous impact on our planet’s 7 billion-strong population, and that impact will increase as economies develop and the global population grows to reach the 9.3 billion mark expected in around 2050," WMO secretary general Michel Jarraud said.

 

Between 1980 and 2007, the WMO said nearly 7,500 natural disasters took the lives of over two million people and produced economic losses estimated at over $1.2 trillion.

 

More than 70 percent of the casualties and almost 80 percent of the economic losses were caused by weather-, climate- or water-related hazards such as tropical cyclones and storm surges, droughts, floods or related disease epidemics and insect infestations, Jarraud added.

 

While early warnings from national meteorological and hydrological services helped reduce the loss of life, economic losses have increased.

 

"More than ever the world needs global cooperation to promote and coordinate the provision of better and longer-term weather and climate forecasts and early warnings to protect life and property. The 2013 World Meteorological Day offers an occasion to reinforce this message and to contribute to addressing the challenges of the 21st century," Jarraud said.

 

The WMO noted technological advances, from observing stations to computers, can now run sophisticated weather and climate models.

 

Data assimilation algorithms can also take full advantage of observations from satellites and other systems.

 

Yet, it said the climate is shaped by natural and human-made changes and variations in the Earth’s land surface, oceans, rivers, lakes, glaciers, ice caps, and forests and other ecosystems.

 

It is also influenced by changing levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases – by absorbing the infrared radiation reflected back out to space by the Earth after it is heated by the sun, these gases control the way natural energy flows through the climate system, it added.

 

"A better understanding of climate contributes to a better understanding of weather, and vice versa. For example, new insights into how climate change will alter the patterns and frequencies of storms and other extreme events will enable better weather analyses and predictions. Improved observations of, and research into, weather events and trends will help to fine tune climate models and forecasts," it said.

 

Meanwhile, the WMO said the next 50 years promise to be equally exciting if not more so as meteorologists  will continue to improve information products and make them more narrowly targeted to specific users in fields such as agriculture, water resources, public health and urban management.

 

"These future advances will be driven by the growing demands for greater safety and security. The impacts of climate change will also drive the search for increased weather and climate resilience," it said.

 

Sustainable development

 

The WMO said a greater understanding of climate and weather  will support policies for sustainable development, and will contribute to humanity’s efforts to interact sustainably with the natural environment despite growing economies and populations.

 

"For example, improved forecasts will support efforts to maximize the efficiency of water use, rationalize energy consumption through the optimal timing of renewables  production, and allocate resources more precisely in the agriculture, construction and transport sectors," it said.

 

Also, it said more targeted and reliable forecasts will let resource managers and decision makers craft better short-term decisions and long-term strategies.

 

Improved weather forecasts will enable farmers to adapt more quickly to the arrival of too much or too little rain, while better climate forecasts will guide them in planting the best crops for the next season’s conditions, it added.

 

But the WMO said that for all of these remarkable capabilities to become a reality, the world’s governments and researchers will need to collaborate more closely on weather, climate and water-related issues and systems.

 

"They will need to invest in new instruments for improving observations of currently monitored variables as well as for detecting variables that are not yet being measured, such as carbon fluxes from oceans and forests. In this way, the international community will realize the truly exciting vision of applying science and technology to solve some of humanity’s greatest challenges," it said. — TJD, GMA News