HKO organises training course on city forecasts

Eight meteorologists, from Bangladesh, Mainland China, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Nepal, Oman, Vietnam and Yemen, are attending a training course on city weather forecasts organised by the Hong Kong Observatory from December 1 to 5.

This is the 11th professional training course organised by the Observatory for the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). The objective of the present course is to enhance the capability of trainees in formulating weather forecasts through the use of city-specific Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) products.

Mrs Svetlana Amankulova, a participant from Kazakhstan, said the training course offered her a valuable opportunity to learn the use of NWP products for predicting a city's weather. "I am impressed by the sophisticated forecasting system and the experience of applying NWP products in Hong Kong. Overall, the course is very useful and I have benefited considerably from it," she said.

The Director of the Hong Kong Observatory, Mr Lam Chiu-ying, said at the the opening ceremony on December 1 that the 13th Session of Region II of WMO in December 2004 endorsed the establishment of a Pilot Project on the Provision of City-Specific NWP Products to Developing Countries via the Internet.

"The pilot project aims to enhance the weather forecasting capacity of developing countries in the region through the supply of city-specific NWP products. City-specific forecast time series products, provided by Hong Kong, Japan and the Republic of Korea, have been made available on their respective websites since January 2006, covering 160 cities. The training course will help meteorologists make better use of these NWP products for predicting city weather in their home countries," Mr Lam said.

"We will continue to promote the use of city-specific NWP products among WMO members and share our experience with other meteorological services around the world."

Participants are expected to contribute to the development and enhancement of their own forecasting methodology upon return to their home countries.