Panaji, 18-05-2020

Monsoon is fast approaching and it’s no time better than now to remind ourselves the team of officers and staff working off the screen to shield us from the inclement and unpredictable climatic conditions. MeteorologicalCentre Goa gives a host of services which enable the state to tide through the capricious weather. It collects the daily rainfall from 13 stations in Goa and published the same for public on its website. Through its weather bulletins three times a day Goa Met Centre give details about the maximum and minimum temperature, rainfall data and forecast for the next five days. It issues local weather forecast for Panaji and Mormugao  - with Likely, Maximum & Minimum Temperatures during next 48 hours. In addition to the regular weather bulletins Goa Met dept issues other bulletins which give information regarding Thunderstorm & heavy rainfall warnings for next five days and the forecast. These forecasts are regularly updated in website and telecasted through All India Radio and Doordarshan.  Apart from disseminating the information through print and visual media, Met centre Goa is upfront in using social media platforms such as Whatsapp, facebook and twitter for quick and effective communication of weather warnings.

Goa Met Dept becomes the real-life saviour through their Fishermen warning, which advises fishermen about the areas in sea which have severe weather and where they should avoid venturing to. The warning with graphics, is given for the coastal seas within 75 kms from the coast and for the high seas which are beyond 75km for south Maharashtra and Goa coasts.

To achieve these objectives Goa Met Dept uses various instruments like dry bulb thermometer and wet bulb thermometer which reads instantaneous temperature of atmosphere near the ground, and helps to calculate relative humidity. Maximum and minimum temp thermometers give the absolute maximum and minimum temperature respectively for the past 24 hours, Digital Barometer & Analogue Mercury Barometergives the station level atmospheric pressure, while the wind vane gives the direction of the wind. Both automatic and manual rain gauges are engaged by the Met dept for the accurate measurement of rainfall. Automatic rainguage stations are installed at Mapusa, Old Goa (ICAR), Pernem & Valpoi in North Goa and Canacona in South Goa. Automatic Weather stations are installed at Panaji; Ela (Old Goa) and Mormugao. To gather upper atmospheric data a Radiosonde is employed.

 Seismic Real Time Seismic Monitoring System is installed with Goa Met Dept which records real time Seismic data. The data is automatically transmitted to Headquarters in Delhi through satellite.

Nowcasting is weather forecasting on a very short-term period of up to 3 hours. This forecast is an extrapolation in time of known weather parameters, including those obtained by means of remote sensing, using techniques that take into account a possible evolution of the air mass. Met dept uses advanced equipment called Doppler Weather Radar for Nowcasting. This radar has the capability to identify severe weather system from distances up to 500kms.

Doppler Weather Radar unit 

Radiosonde File Pic

 

In addition to the regular activities Met Dept Goa also issues VVIP Forecast during visit of VVIPs to Goa, provides radar data to Dabolim Airport Authority for smooth operation of flights, arrange educational visit for school/college students.

The COVID 19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown has challenged the functioning of the Centre, despite that the Officers and staff raised to the occasion in giving accurate and precise forecasts. The Centre adopted all the standard instructions issued by state and central governments to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Facemasks and gloves, sanitizers and hand wash solutions were distributed among staff. Scientific assistants, Multi-Tasking staff and officers faced all the challenges of such as absence of transportation facilities, but still ensured that all meteorological observations were taken on time and all forecasts were issued on time. MTS staff worked in continuous shift of 24 hours to stick to the criteria of minimum number of staff in office as a precaution against spread of COVID 19. In this unprecedented times, Meteorological Centre Goa remained open 24x7 and issued the details on each and every severe weather system formed, whether it be 12 in the afternoon or 12 in the midnight.

Meterological Centre Goa was earlier known as “Servicometeorologico do estado da india” under “servicometeorologiconacional”, lisbon, Portugal which was established at Lisbon, Portugal on 29

IMD Campus, Goa

August 1946. The Meteorological Service started in Goa immediately after it started in Portugal. Later it was known as “Goa Observatory” in the middle of the year 1963 as a part of India Meteorological Department. Same was declared as Meteorological Centre from Aug 2007.

 

VK/PK

 

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