Two new radars to give fillip to weather services in India

New Delhi (India Science Wire): The principal agency responsible for meteorological observations, weather forecasting and climate services in the country—India Meteorological Department (IMD) has launched two new Doppler weather radars at Mukteshwar in Uttarakhand and Kufri in Himachal Pradesh respectively. The launch was announced during IMD’s 146th foundation day event organized January 15. The event was webcast live from New Delhi. 

Dr Harsh Vardhan, Hon’ble Union Minister for Earth Sciences, Health and Family Welfare, and Science and Technology, was the Chief Guest at the event. Shri Trivendra Singh Rawat, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Uttarakhand and Shri Jai Ram Thakur, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh were the guests of honour. The function was presided by Dr M Rajeevan, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), in the presence of Dr M Mohapatra, Director General, IMD. 

The two radars will be providing severe weather information to the weather forecasters thus improving the service being provided by IMD catering to the welfare and safety of the public in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. It will also provide valuable support to the disaster managers and pilgrims undertaking the pilgrimage to Kailash Mansarovar and Char Dham yatra. The minister also launched the Multi-mission Meteorological Data Receiving and Processing System (MMDRPS) installed in collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It has the latest tools and process to process INSAT (Indian National Satellite System) data in less than seven minutes. This will improve the monitoring and forecasts of severe weather events in the country and will benefit several stakeholders including industry, disaster management authorities, academia, public, etc.

The online version of journal Mausam, a report on cyclone disturbances during 2020 and the latest issue of Mausam Manjusha, were also released. Mausam, which is the quarterly research journal brought out by IMD since 1950 on topics related to meteorology, hydrology, and geophysics, is now made available online. As the country had five cyclones in 2020, including a super cyclone Amphan that hit parts of the east coast of India in May 2020; the Report on Cyclone Disturbances during 2020 released by IMD is timely and relevant. Mausam Manjusha, a quarterly newsletter of the IMD in Hindi, helps to disseminate interesting information to the masses for societal benefit. 

Extending his wishes to IMD, Dr M Rajeevan, Secretary, MoES, said “IMD has accomplished last-mile connectivity of information to citizens in addition to conducting socially-relevant research.” (India Science Wire)