PAGASA gives media workshop on weather forecasting

By Alex Villafania
INQUIRER.net

LOS BAÑOS, Laguna–Members of the media that cover weather and those interested in the science of weather forecasting went to a field workshop by the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Service Administration (PAGASA), the country’s lead agency on weather preparedness and forecasting.

The workshop was held at the Splash Mountain Resort in Los Banos, Laguna and was attended by around 30 journalists from print, TV, radio and online. The three-day event aims to provide media all the information on weather forecasting, the technical details on data interpretation and planning on public information dissemination. It also conducted an astronomical study, particularly stargazing, one aspect that is not commonly known by most people.

Assistant Science Secretary Carol Yorobe said the workshop is one of several activities that aim to get members of the media and scientists to understand each other and form a better system of data collection, interpretation and delivery. “We also want to make scientists out of you,” as Yorobe simply put it.

The first day of the workshop focused mainly on the basics of weather and climate terminology and forecasting techniques. There are familiar terms and concepts on weather formation and climate changes that are actually part of elementary science textbooks. Still, the information was necessary in order to better establish the next stages of how weather is formed in the Philippines.

The sessions included weather hazards in the Philippines, as presented by senior weather specialist Ninio Alejandre Relox wherein he identified the kinds of weather-related dangers such as thunderstorms, hail storms, flash floods, and on rare occasions, tornados and waterspouts. Relox also described the difference between the northeast monsoon (locally known as “Amihan”) and the southwest monsoon (locally termed “Habagat”) and their different effects and potential damage to properties and human life.

Meanwhile, PAGASA Weather Branch chief Nathaniel Cruz described how PAGASA gathers weather and climate information both within and outside the country. In most cases, PAGASA regularly gets data from international observation satellites and facilities for weather anomalies, which it interprets into forecasting data for Philippine use. Based on the data, PAGASA weather specialists monitor the movement, speed and strength of the weather anomaly, categorized then given appropriate warnings to the public.

Meanwhile, Jose Mendoza IV, a specialist from the astronomy division of PAGASA, also gave insights regarding the country’s astronomical programs. He said there are several government-owned astronomical observation facilities open to the public. Mendoza also said that PAGASA just recently switched on an astronomy website in celebration of the upcoming International Year of Astronomy 2009.

During the open forum, the PAGASA executives noted the problems with the agency’s budget and manpower. Annually, PAGASA gets about P500 million, though it is getting more from the government due to better weather forecasting techniques regardless of lack of equipment and manpower.

PAGASA chief of staff Cecilia Monteverde said the ideal distance of weather stations should be within 20 kilometers to get more specific weather data rather than a general overview within a large area. However, she said that the best that could be hoped for is one per region.

With regards to manpower, PAGASA chief of the Natural Disaster Reduction Branch Rolu Encarnacion said that there are only a few weather forecasters working in PAGASA now and that there are occasions when their most senior forecasters move to work for the private sector or are hired abroad.

There are no schools offering meteorology and climatology as an undergraduate course though the University of the Philippines-Diliman offers graduate and post-graduate degree while the Ateneo De Manila University is planning to offer it soon.

“It’s not easy to be in this industry because the skills necessary are really high. It requires a lot of mathematical modeling to get the right data,” Encarnacion said.

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