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Forecasting Heavy Rains and Landslides in Eastern Africa
Good rainfall draws many people to settle across the eastern Africa highlands for farming and other businesses. However, factors such as steep terrain, logging, livestock grazing, agriculture, and construction, have increased erosion and contributed to less stable slopes. These factors can lead to devastating landslides and mudslides, especially during episodes of very heavy rain. Forecasting and monitoring heavy rainfall is challenging, especially in mountainous regions that have few surface observations. This make satellite data critical for meteorologists and hydrologists forecasting for th ...
Available online: https://www.meted.ucar.edu/training_module.php?id=1203
Published by: The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research ; 2015
Good rainfall draws many people to settle across the eastern Africa highlands for farming and other businesses. However, factors such as steep terrain, logging, livestock grazing, agriculture, and construction, have increased erosion and contributed to less stable slopes. These factors can lead to devastating landslides and mudslides, especially during episodes of very heavy rain. Forecasting and monitoring heavy rainfall is challenging, especially in mountainous regions that have few surface observations. This make satellite data critical for meteorologists and hydrologists forecasting for these areas. This lesson provides background information and a case study on how to use MSG satellite imagery and derived products, numerical weather prediction output, climatology, and other data in the forecast process so early advisories can be delivered to government officials and the public. The lesson is intended for weather forecasters although hydrologists, other scientists, and students can profit from it as well. Note that the lesson has been developed with funding from EUMETSAT for the ASMET project.
Disclaimer regarding 3rd party resources: WMO endeavours to ensure, but cannot and does not guarantee the accuracy, accessibility, integrity and timeliness of the information available on its website. WMO may make changes to the content of this website at any time without notice.
The responsibility for opinions expressed in articles, publications, studies and other contributions rests solely with their authors, and their posting on this website does not constitute an endorsement by WMO of the opinion expressed therein.
WMO shall not be liable for any damages incurred as a result of the use of its website. Please do not misuse our website.Language(s): English
Format: Digital (Standard Copyright)Tags: Climatology ; Weather forecasting ; Landslide ; Convection ; Lesson/ Tutorial ; East Africa ; Kenya ; Satellite Skills and Knowledge for Operational Meteorologists
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Extreme High Swell Events on the Moroccan Atlantic Coast
High swell events can develop far from the coast under cyclonic conditions, and take several days to travel to land. If early warnings are not issued, they can take an area by surprise and have a devastating impact. This lesson aims to improve the ability of marine forecasters to forecast extreme marine events related to high swells. It does so by providing background information on winds and waves, and presenting a process for monitoring and forecasting high swell events using a variety of data. These include ASCAT scatterometer wind data and the ECMWF Extreme Forecast Index (EFI) product, wh ...
Available online: https://www.meted.ucar.edu/training_module.php?id=1206
Published by: The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research ; 2015
High swell events can develop far from the coast under cyclonic conditions, and take several days to travel to land. If early warnings are not issued, they can take an area by surprise and have a devastating impact. This lesson aims to improve the ability of marine forecasters to forecast extreme marine events related to high swells. It does so by providing background information on winds and waves, and presenting a process for monitoring and forecasting high swell events using a variety of data. These include ASCAT scatterometer wind data and the ECMWF Extreme Forecast Index (EFI) product, which helps verify model output and improve the quality of heavy swell forecasts. The forecast process is applied to two cases that occurred on the Moroccan Atlantic coast in 2014. Note that the lesson has been developed with funding from EUMETSAT for the ASMET project.
Disclaimer regarding 3rd party resources: WMO endeavours to ensure, but cannot and does not guarantee the accuracy, accessibility, integrity and timeliness of the information available on its website. WMO may make changes to the content of this website at any time without notice.
The responsibility for opinions expressed in articles, publications, studies and other contributions rests solely with their authors, and their posting on this website does not constitute an endorsement by WMO of the opinion expressed therein.
WMO shall not be liable for any damages incurred as a result of the use of its website. Please do not misuse our website.Language(s): English
Format: Digital (Standard Copyright)Tags: Weather forecasting ; Wave ; Marine meteorology ; Lesson/ Tutorial ; Morocco ; Atlantic Ocean ; Marine Weather Forecasters ; Satellite Skills and Knowledge for Operational Meteorologists
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Using ASCAT Wind and Other Data in Marine Forecasting
This case study lesson demonstrates the use of scatterometer wind and, to a lesser extent, altimeter significant wave height products in marine forecasting. A brief introduction to cold fronts and their impact on weather and sea state conditions sets the stage for the main part of the lesson, the case study. The case follows the passage of a cold front over the South Atlantic Ocean on 23 and 24 November 2013 when the Polarstern research vessel was transiting the area. Learners use ASCAT wind and Jason significant wave height data to help determine current conditions and evaluate GFS and WAVEWA ...
Available online: https://www.meted.ucar.edu/training_module.php?id=1204
Published by: The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research ; 2015
This case study lesson demonstrates the use of scatterometer wind and, to a lesser extent, altimeter significant wave height products in marine forecasting. A brief introduction to cold fronts and their impact on weather and sea state conditions sets the stage for the main part of the lesson, the case study. The case follows the passage of a cold front over the South Atlantic Ocean on 23 and 24 November 2013 when the Polarstern research vessel was transiting the area. Learners use ASCAT wind and Jason significant wave height data to help determine current conditions and evaluate GFS and WAVEWATCH III analyses and forecasts. The lesson is intended for operational marine forecasters, meteorologists, and meteorological technicians at coastal stations, as well as meteorology students. Note that the lesson has been developed with funding from EUMETSAT for the ASMET project.
Disclaimer regarding 3rd party resources: WMO endeavours to ensure, but cannot and does not guarantee the accuracy, accessibility, integrity and timeliness of the information available on its website. WMO may make changes to the content of this website at any time without notice.
The responsibility for opinions expressed in articles, publications, studies and other contributions rests solely with their authors, and their posting on this website does not constitute an endorsement by WMO of the opinion expressed therein.
WMO shall not be liable for any damages incurred as a result of the use of its website. Please do not misuse our website.Language(s): English
Format: Digital (Standard Copyright)Tags: Weather forecasting ; Marine meteorology ; Lesson/ Tutorial ; South Africa ; Marine Weather Forecasters ; Satellite Skills and Knowledge for Operational Meteorologists
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SDS-WAS, 2015-001. Dust/ sand storms over Libya : Spatial distribution, frequency and seasonality, technical report
The climate of most of the coastal region of Libya can be classified as semi-arid, while that of the rest of the country is arid. Rainfall is erratic with extremely variable yearly rainfall amounts: a series of dry years may follow a year with adequate rainfall. Furthermore, monthly and seasonal totals are not homogenous and most precipitation occurs during winter months.
Dust and sand storms, the focus of the present study, are one of the main extreme weather phenomena that affect Libya. In this paper, spatial and temporal distribution, frequency and seasonality are studied and analyze ...
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Available online: Full text
Ali Salem Eddenjal ; World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
Published by: WMO ; 2015The climate of most of the coastal region of Libya can be classified as semi-arid, while that of the rest of the country is arid. Rainfall is erratic with extremely variable yearly rainfall amounts: a series of dry years may follow a year with adequate rainfall. Furthermore, monthly and seasonal totals are not homogenous and most precipitation occurs during winter months.
Dust and sand storms, the focus of the present study, are one of the main extreme weather phenomena that affect Libya. In this paper, spatial and temporal distribution, frequency and seasonality are studied and analyzed. Normal frequency for the period 1961-1990 is computed and discussed on seasonal and annual basis. Finally, the annual frequency for the period 2000-2009 is computed and compared with the normal values in order to analyze temporal trends.
The analysis concludes that sand and dust storms occur in most stations almost the whole year. They are more frequent in spring, especially in April, with the highest annual frequencies observed at Tobruk airport (14.9 days), Hon (12.9), Sirt (11.2( and Ghadames (11.1). A net decrease of 30% is observed during the decade 2000-2009 when compared with the normal values for 1961-1990.Collection(s) and Series: SDS-WAS- No. 2015-001
Language(s): English
Format: Digital (Free)Tags: Sandstorm ; Dust storm ; Libya (State of) ; Synoptic weather station ; Lee depressions
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Disaster risk reduction efforts in the Greater Horn of Africa : In International Journal of Disaster Risk Science, March 2015, volume 6, issue 1, pp. 49-61
This article assesses the current state of disaster risk reduction (DRR) in the Greater Horn of Africa (GHA), and focuses on interventions and policies to mitigate hydrometeorological risks. The research analyzes, as main case study, the program “Regional Climate Prediction and Risk Reduction in the Greater Horn of Africa” funded by the Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID OFDA) in the early 2000 that targeted risk preparedness.
Disaster risk reduction efforts in the Greater Horn of Africa: In International Journal of Disaster Risk Science, March 2015, volume 6, issue 1, pp. 49-61
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Available online: http://preventionweb.net/go/46403
This article assesses the current state of disaster risk reduction (DRR) in the Greater Horn of Africa (GHA), and focuses on interventions and policies to mitigate hydrometeorological risks. The research analyzes, as main case study, the program “Regional Climate Prediction and Risk Reduction in the Greater Horn of Africa” funded by the Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID OFDA) in the early 2000 that targeted risk preparedness.
Language(s): English
Format: Digital (Free)Tags: Disaster Risk Management (DRM) ; Djibouti ; Eritrea ; Ethiopia ; Kenya ; Somalia ; Sudan ; United Republic of Tanzania ; Uganda
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Assessing Agricultural Risk in Africa Using Satellite Data and Land Surface Models
Droughts pose a major risk in most African countries including Ghana where agricultural activities are heavily dependent on rainfall. Efforts at assessing droughts and providing decision support tools to farmers are hampered by a lack of rainfall and other meteorological data over many parts of Africa. Satellite based rainfall measurements have been suggested to fill the rainfall data gaps over Africa to enable effective assessment of droughts. Traditional methods of assessing droughts have been based on statistical formulations that relied mostly on precipitation. This approach to assessing d ...
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Rainfall characteristics over Togo and their related atomospheric circulation anomalies: In Journal of Environmental & Agricultural Sciences, 5:34-48
This study attempts to reveal features of rainfall over Togo, in relationship to the
prevailing atmospheric circulation. The study employed correlation analysis and composite analysis in
the analysis of rainfall, sea surface temperature, wind, and humidity. Empirical orthogonal functions
(EOF) analysis was employed in this study. The years: 1989, 1991, 1995, 2003 and 2007 were
identified to be anomalously wet years while 1982, 1983, 1990, 1992, 2001 and 2006 fall in the
anomalously dry years’ category. The dominant mode of variability exhibits a dipole patter ...
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Monitoring and evaluating climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction in Uganda
This scoping study report is an analysis of the monitoring and evaluation frameworks and tools in Uganda with focus on climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction. It provides an overview of Uganda’s climate change and other related policy context and their provisions for monitoring and evaluation frameworks. The report also highlights the current reporting systems and the mandates of different institutions for climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction. The tools and systems used for data and information collection, processing, reporting, storage and dissemination are hig ...
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Agricultural vulnerability to climate change in Sokoto State, Nigeria: In African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development
Atedhor G.O. - Oxford Policy Management, 2015This paper examines agricultural vulnerability to climate change in eight selected rural settlements in Sokoto State, Nigeria.
An integrated approach is used which combines environmental and socio-economic determinants. Results show that while there were downward trends of annual rainfall and raindays in Sokoto, annual mean temperatures show upward trend. Annual droughts were of slight and moderate intensities during the period under review. The results also revealed that unreliable rainfall, desertification, increasing temperatures, scarcity of pastures and inaccessibility to c ...
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Climate finance and water security: Synthesis report
This synthesis report summarises research on how climate finance has been spent so far, and whether or not it has been spent on improving people’s water security.
The report highlights that the global community has committed to mobilise US $100 billion every year, from 2020 onwards. The study aims to identify the type and scale of national and subnational programmes and projects that have been funded by climate finance and how they relate to local water security. Findings are summarised from three case studies in Bangladesh, Ethiopia and Zambia.
There is a brief d ...
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Potential impact of climate and socioeconomic changes on future agricultural land use in West Africa: In Earth Syst. Dynam. Discuss., 6
Copernicus Publications, 2015This study compares the contributions of climate change and socioeconomic development to potential future changes of agricultural land use in West Africa.
It uses a prototype land use projection (LandPro) algorithm which is based on a balance between food supply and demand, and accounts for the impact of socioeconomic drivers on the demand side and the impact of climate-induced crop yield changes on the supply side. It considers the impact of human decision-making on land use.
The paper argues that without agricultural intensification, the climate-induced decrease ...
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Malawi 2015 floods post disaster needs assessment report
Malawi - government, 2015The PDNA report indicates that the Malawi 2015 floods affected 1,101,364 people, displaced 230,000 and killed 106 people. The assessment focuses on medium to long term reconstruction and provides the guiding principles for recovery, including assessment of the damage, losses, and recovery and reconstruction strategies for each sector are provided in detailed sector.
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National climate change adaptation: emerging practices in monitoring and evaluation
Unblocking the climate finance negotiations will unlock a new global agreement on climate change in Paris later this year. Developing countries need to see tangible commitment to providing the finance needed to combat the negative effects of climate change.
As global emissions continue to increase, so does the cost of managing the impact. Africa’s Group of Negotiators (AGN) is positioned to take the lead, consistently presenting common positions for 54 countries. A breakthrough necessitates focus on a key issue that will yield win–win outcomes. The global climate finance architecture, w ...
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