World Meteorological Organization

Today is World Meteorological Day, an important date in the calendar of the World Meteorological Organization, better known as the WMO. Exactly 52 years ago the World Meteorological Convention came into force, bringing into existence the WMO, a United Nations specialised agency.

The weather is not just the subject of polite conversation, it affects our moods, the quality and the cost of the food we eat, our leisure activities and - for many of us - our livelihoods. As the atmosphere has no national or regional boundaries an authoritative international organisation is needed to provide a scientific voice, acting in the interests of us all, on the weather and the Earth’s climate.

When the WMO first began operating, weather forecasts tended to be rather hit and miss affairs, more often renowned for their failures than for their accurate predictions. Over the years, however, the accuracy of weather reports has improved enormously, greatly aided by powerful computers and the use of weather satellites, the first of which was launched in 1960.

This is where the WMO comes in. Since its inception it has fostered international treaties and conventions concerning the climate, and facilitated the rapid exchange of information, the standardisation of meteorological recordings and data, and the publication of observations and statistics.

Meteorological satellites

Now the WMO community can rely on data from four polar orbiting and five geostationary satellites. This is in addition to approximately 10 000 land observation and 7000 ship stations, and 300 moored and drifting buoys carrying automatic weather stations.

Within the near future there will be another weather satellite in orbit. The first Meteosat Second Generation satellite, MSG-1, is due to be launched shortly from Europe’s spaceport in French Guiana, onboard an Ariane launcher. MSG is the result of a cooperation programme between ESA and Eumetsat, the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites, based in Germany. ESA’s role in this partnership is to design and develop MSG-1, and to procure MSG-2 and -3 on behalf of Eumetsat.

Once in its geostationary orbit at an altitude of 36 000 km, MSG will be one of the world’s most sophisticated meteorological satellites and will use the most advanced technology available. The two main instruments on board will be the MSG camera SEVIRI - the Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infra-red Imager and GERB - the Geostationary Earth Radiation Budget.