World Meteorological Organization, WMO

WMO (World Meteorological Organization)

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is one of the specialized agencies of the United Nations. It is the status and characteristics of the United Nations system related to the Earth ’s atmosphere. Authority agency.

WMO has 187 national members and 6 regional members.  Its predecessor was the International Meteorological Organization (IMO), which was born in 1873. WMO was established in 1950, and the following year became a specialized agency of the United Nations on meteorology (weather and climate), operational hydrology, and related geophysical sciences.  

 

International Organization Name	World Meteorological Organization
Abbreviation	WMO
Predecessor	International Meteorological Organization (IMO)
Established	1873
Place of establishment	Vienna
Business	Meteorological operations and meteorological science cooperation activities
Official website	ttps://www.wmo.int/
Principal	Dr. David Grimes
Secretary	Michel Jarraud
Headquarters	Geneva, Switzerland
Chairperson	Gerhard Adrian

World Meteorological Organization Introduction

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is one of the specialized agencies of the United Nations.

In September-October 1947, the name was changed to the World Meteorological Organization at the meeting of the Directors of National Meteorological Organizations held in Washington.

Its predecessor, the International Meteorological Organization (IMO for short), is an unofficial institution officially established in 1878 after two international conferences held in Leipzig and Vienna in 1872 and 1873, respectively.

The meeting of the Directors of Meteorology of various countries held in Washington in September 1947 adopted the draft of the World Meteorological Convention, which entered into force on March 23, 1950, and the International Meteorological Organization was renamed the World Meteorological Organization.

The first meeting of the World Meteorological Organization was held in Paris on March 19, 1951, and the institution was formally established. In December of the same year, it became a specialized agency of the United Nations.

Development History of WMO

The "World Meteorological Organization Convention" came into effect in 1950, and the World Meteorological Organization was established.

2009 20th Anniversary of WMO Global Atmospheric Monitoring (GAW)

The Third World Climate Conference was held on the basis of the First and Second World Climate Conferences (1979 and 1990)

2008 20th anniversary of the establishment of the WMO / UNEP Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

2007 WMO-UNEP's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change shares the Nobel Peace Prize with former US Vice President and environmentalist Mr. Al Gore.

Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

The United Nations Climate Change Conference (Bali, Indonesia) adopted the Bali roadmap for the new negotiation process to be conducted in 2009, which will form an international climate change agreement after 2012.

20th anniversary of the Montreal Protocol: 

WMO won the Montreal Protocol Partner Award Protocol Partners Award

• International Polar Year 2007-2008 co-sponsored by WMO and the International Federation of Science and Technology
• Safe and sustainable life: International Conference on the Socio-economic Benefits of Weather, Climate and Water Services (Madrid, Spain)
• 2006 WMO Greenhouse Gas Bulletin released
• WMO Arctic Ozone Bulletin released
• The worst Antarctic ozone hole occurred on record
• 2005 First World Conference on Disaster Reduction (Hyogo, Japan)
• International Conference to Review the Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States (Mauritius)
• Establishment of the International Earth Observation Group Secretariat in the WMO Secretariat
• 2003 Celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Brussels Congress (1853)
• The Second Women’s Conference on Meteorology and Hydrology (Geneva)
• Launch of Natural Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Plan, WMO Space Plan and Least Developed Countries Program (LDC) (belonging to Technical Cooperation Program)
• 2002 World Sustainable Development Summit (Johannesburg, South Africa)
• 2001 Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
• 2000 50th Anniversary Celebration of the World Meteorological Organization
• 1999 WMO new headquarters building is completed in Geneva
• 1997 Kyoto Conference determines greenhouse gas emission reduction targets and timetable
• Women in International Conference on Meteorology and Hydrology (Bangkok, Thailand)
• 1995 Established the CLIPS project
• The Second Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
• Groundbreaking ceremony of the new WMO building
• 1993 Launched the World Hydrological Cycle Observing System (WHYCOS)
• 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
• Establish Global Climate Observing System (GCOS)
• International Water and Environment Conference (Dublin, Ireland)
• 1991 First meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
• 1990 The Second World Climate Conference launched the Global Climate Observing System
• International Decade for Disaster Reduction begins
• The first assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
• 1989 Established a global atmospheric monitoring network to monitor atmospheric composition
• WMO and UNEP start the negotiation process of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
• 1988 Establishment of the WMO / UNEP Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
• 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer
• 1985 Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer
• 1983 Established WMO long-term planning process
• 1979 The First World Climate Conference established the WMO World Climate Plan
• 1978/1979 Global weather test and monsoon test under the Global Atmospheric Research Program
• 1977 WMO and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO jointly establish an international integrated global ocean service system
• 1976 WMO launches first international assessment of global ozone situation
• 1972 Designated WMO operational hydrological activities as operational hydrological plans
• 1971 Established a tropical cyclone project and later upgraded to a tropical cyclone plan
• 1963 Launched the World Weather Watch
• In June 1960, the World Meteorological Organization decided to set the effective date of the Convention and the name of the World Meteorological Organization-March 23 as "World Meteorological Day".
• 1957 Initiation of the International Geophysical Year 1957-1958
• Establish a global ozone observation system
• 1951 WMO becomes a specialized agency of the United Nations
• 1950 WMO Convention takes effect on March 23, and the International Meteorological Organization officially changes its name to the World Meteorological Organization
• 1947 The General Conference of Meteorological Directors convenes a conference in Washington, and adopts the "WMO Convention"
• In July 1946, Norwegian scholar Dr. Heiseberg drafted a draft World Meteorological Convention at an International Meteorological Organization meeting in Paris One.
• 1932 Launched the second International Polar Year 1932-1933
• 1882 Launch of the first International Polar Year 1882-1883
• 1873 The predecessor of WMO, the International Meteorological Organization (IMO) was born, the headquarters of Geneva, Switzerland (Vienna)
• 1853 First International Meteorological Congress (Brussels)

What is the Purpose of World Meteorological Organization, WMO?

WMO is a specialized agency of the United Nations. The aims of the organization include:

Facilitate worldwide cooperation in the establishment of networks for meteorological, hydrological and other geophysical observations, and the establishment of various centers providing meteorological services and observations.

Promote the establishment and maintenance of a system for rapid exchange of meteorological information and related data.

Promote the standardization of meteorological observations and ensure the uniform release of observations and statistical data.

Promote the application of meteorology in the fields of aviation, shipping, water issues, agriculture and other human activities.

Promote practical hydrological activities and strengthen close cooperation between meteorological services and hydrological services.

Encourage research and training in meteorology and other relevant fields as appropriate.

What is the Organizational Structure of the World Meteorological Organization, WMO

The highest authority is the World Meteorological Congress, held every 4 years. 

There is also an executive board, regional associations, technical committees and a secretariat.

World Meteorological Congress

The General Assembly is the highest authority of the organization, with members sending delegations to the meeting.

Generally, a conference is held every 4 years to review the work of the past 4 years, study and approve various business, scientific research, technical cooperation and other plans for the next 4 years to determine the overall policy adopted to achieve the organization’s purpose and adopt technical regulations and determine the WMO programme and budget for the next four years.

Elect new presidents and vice-presidents, elect members of the executive board and appoint secretary-general other than the presidents and vice-presidents of the organization and regional associations.

Executive council of the WMO

The Executive Committee of the World Meteorological Organization (formerly known as the Executive Committee) is composed of 36 directors of the National Meteorological and Hydrological Bureau.

It meets at least once a year to review the organization’s activities and implement the decisions of the WMO General Assembly. 

It is the executive body during the closing of the conference and is equivalent to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

The number of its members gradually increases according to the increase in the number of members of the organization.

At present, the hospitality council is composed of 36 people, including the chairman of the organization, 3 vice-chairmen (2 vice-chairmen before the 5th conference), 6 presidents of regional associations, and 26 members (all directors) elected by the meteorological conference )composition.

Regional Association

By geographical area, the World Meteorological Organization is divided into six regional associations. That is, Region 1 (Africa), Region 2 (Asia), Region 3 (South America), Region 4 (North and Central America), Region 5 (Southwest Pacific), and Region 6 (Europe).

The regional associations are mainly responsible for various meteorological and hydrological activities in the region, and implement relevant resolutions of the General Assembly and the Executive Council. A session is usually held every 4 years.

China belongs to the Second Regional Association (Asia) Association. Hong Kong, China, and Macau, China, as regional members, also belong to the Second (Asian) Regional Association.

Coordinate meteorological and hydrological activities in their respective regions and review all issues submitted to them from a regional perspective.

Technical Committee of the World Meteorological Organization, WMO

According to the nature of meteorological and hydrological operations, the World Meteorological Organization divides the technical committee into two groups of eight committees.

They are:

1. A Basic Committee, including the Basic System Committee (CBS) Atmospheric Science Committee (CAS)
2. and the Instrument and Observation Method Committee CIMO)
3. and Hydrology Committee (CHY)
4. B Application Committee, including Climatology Committee (CCL)
5. Agricultural Meteorology Committee (CAGM)
6. Aeronautical Meteorology Committee (CAEM)
7. World Meteorological Organization / Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission
   
8. Marine and Marine Meteorology Joint Commission (JCOMM)
   

The committee is nominated and appointed by the members of the organization to participate in the experts. The work of the committee is mainly to implement the resolutions of the General Assembly, the Executive Council and the regional associations and coordinate the work of the committee in the scope of its duties. The session is usually held every 4 years. 

World Meteorological Organization, WMO Secretariat

The Secretariat is a permanent office of the World Meteorological Organization. 

The Secretariat moved from Lausanne, Switzerland to Geneva on December 10, 1951. 

The Secretariat is chaired by the Secretary General appointed by the Meteorological Congress.

The current Secretary General is Mr. Mchel Jarraud of France. In order to handle daily international meteorological affairs, several functional divisions under the Secretariat are responsible for related work. They are: 

1. Secretary-General’s Office
2. World Weather Monitoring Network Division
3. Technical Cooperation Division
4. Regional Office
5. Resource Management Division
6. Support Services Division and Language
7. Publishing and Conference Division

The secretariat is engaged in technical research and is responsible for numerous technical cooperation projects in the field of meteorology and practical hydrology worldwide aimed at promoting the economic development of relevant countries.

The Secretariat also publishes special technical notes, guides, manuals and reports, and generally also acts as a link between meteorological services and practical hydrological services.

The Secretariat works in close cooperation with the United Nations and other specialized agencies. 

What are the Sources of funds of World Meteorological Organization, WMO?

Mainly comes from Member States' contributions (approximately 80%) and voluntary contributions (approximately 20%).

Organizational leadership

Chairman: Gerhard Adrian

Secretary-General: Petrie Tallas

Global Cooperation by World Meteorological Organization, WMO

The relevant WMO resolutions were adopted in 1961 and 1962 at the sixteenth and seventeenth sessions of the UN General Assembly within the framework of international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space.

The conference recommended that WMO study how to use developments in space activities to improve the level of atmospheric science and technology. 

In response to these resolutions, WMO established the World Weather Watch and determined the conditions for optimal use of the meteorological system.

It also considered various proposals for atmospheric research, and it is expected that satellite data will be Contribute.

WMO continues to synthesize its operational requirements for satellite data, including those that can be met in the near future, as well as those that require major efforts and cannot be reached until a considerable time in the twenty-first century.

There are ongoing dialogues between various space research organizations and WMO, which will help ensure that our future needs are met through the systems that are emerging and planned to be adopted.

The emphasis is on bringing satellite operators closer to the various mechanisms of WMO. Two international groups specifically mentioned are the Meteorological Satellite Coordination Group and the Earth Observation Satellite Committee.

The Meteorological Satellite Coordination Group was established as an informal group in 1972 to coordinate the first global stationary system among satellite suppliers.

The European Space Research Organization, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Japan’s Japan Meteorological Agency are founding members.

The existing members of the coordination group include the European Meteorological Satellite Application Organization (which is also represented by ESA), India, Japan, China, the United States, the Russian Federation and the Meteorological Organization.

The European Meteorological Satellite Application Organization is now the secretariat of the Meteorological Satellite Coordination Group.

The recommendations of the coordination group are not binding on members, but are implemented on a voluntary basis.

The Earth Observation Satellite Committee was established on the recommendation of the 1984 Economic Summit of the Group of Seven, and has now grown to include all civil organizations responsible for the Earth Observation Space Program in the world, as well as agencies that receive and process space remote sensing data.

Intergovernmental user organizations, especially WMO, as well as various international scientific programmes (International Council of Science Council Geosphere Biosphere Programme, Meteorological Organization and Science Council Climate Programme), have become associate members of the Earth Observation Satellite Committee to strengthen their Collaborate with space agencies to develop global change data requirements and actively participate in the definition of future Earth observation mission ideas. 

Construction Achievements of the World Meteorological Organization, WMO

In the 45 years since the establishment of the World Meteorological Organization, its members have grown to more than 160, and its work has achieved many achievements.

The Global Ozone Observing System, which began in 1957, after 30 years of hard coordination and standardized observations, finally led many countries to sign the Montreal Protocol on the protection of the ozone layer in 1987.

The World Weather Watch, established in 1963, is the backbone project of the World Meteorological Organization.

The World Weather Watch combines more than 100 countries and regions in the world with unified norms and unified technical policies to form a regional and global intelligence network.

China's participation

China is one of the signatories to the 1947 World Meteorological Organization Convention.

Joined the World Meteorological Organization on February 24, 1972. Hong Kong, China and Macau, China are regional members.

Since 1973, China has been a member of the organization’s executive board. 

The successive presidents, secretary-generals and senior officials of the World Meteorological Organization have visited China many times, and were received by Chinese national leaders.

At the 56th session of the World Meteorological Organization Executive Council in June 2004, Yan Hong, former deputy director of the China Meteorological Administration, was appointed deputy secretary general of the World Meteorological Organization.

From May 7 to 25, 2007, China sent a delegation to attend the 15th World Meteorological Organization World Meteorological Congress. At the meeting, Yan Hong was re-elected as the Deputy Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization, and Zheng Guoguang, Director of the China Meteorological Administration, was elected as a member of the Executive Committee of the World Meteorological Organization.

On June 18, 2014, the 66th session of the Executive Committee of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) was held in Geneva, Switzerland. Zheng Guoguang, director of the China Meteorological Administration, attended the meeting on matters such as preparations.

From May 25 to June 12, 2015, the 17th World Meteorological Congress was held in Geneva, Switzerland.

Vice Premier Wang Yang sent a congratulatory message to the 17th World Meteorological Congress.

Zheng Guoguang, Director of the China Meteorological Administration, led a Chinese delegation to attend meeting. Zheng Guoguang was re-elected member of the WMO Executive Council.

The country has built the world’s largest and most comprehensive comprehensive meteorological observation system, with more than 2,400 national-level surface meteorological observation stations fully automated, with nearly 60,000 regional automatic meteorological observation stations and 96% township coverage.

WMO successfully launched 17 Fengyun series of meteorological satellites, 8 orbits in operation, 198 new generation Doppler weather radars formed a strict meteorological disaster monitoring network, and initially established ecological, environmental, agricultural, marine, transportation, tourism and other professional weather Monitoring network.

It was officially recognized as the World Meteorological Center by the World Meteorological Organization and became one of the nine World Meteorological Centers in the world, marking that the overall level of China's meteorological modernization has entered the world's advanced ranks.

World Meteorological Day

March 23 is World Meteorological Day. The World Meteorological Organization identified the theme of World Meteorological Day 2009 as "weather, climate, and the air we breathe."

Meteorology refers to the state and phenomena of the atmosphere, such as wind, lightning, thunder, rain, frost, and snow. Human life is closely related to meteorological changes.

In September 1947, the International Meteorological Organization held a meeting in Washington to review and adopt the "World Meteorological Organization Convention."

After the entry into force of this convention on March 23, 1950, the International Meteorological Organization was renamed the World Meteorological Organization. And and in 1951 became a specialized agency of the United Nations.

In June 1960, the World Meteorological Organization passed a resolution to designate March 23 each year as World Meteorological Day. Every year on World Meteorological Day, the World Meteorological Organization and the international meteorological community will hold promotional activities around a related theme.

As early as the 1950s, the World Meteorological Organization took the lead in coordinating the observation and analysis of atmospheric components.

Through the use of a global network of ground observation stations, remote sensing stations, balloon radiosondes, aircraft and satellites, professionals can regularly collect information on greenhouse gases, aerosols and ozone, as well as traditional meteorological and hydrological parameters.

Mastering this information will help people study meteorological problems, and then make early warning of disasters and prevent them in advance to minimize the impact of disasters.

The Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization, Yarrow, stressed in his speech at this year’s World Meteorological Day that 90% of natural disasters are directly related to weather, climate and water damage.

Therefore, strengthening meteorological work and preventing and mitigating disasters are beneficial to the achievement of the UN Millennium Development Goal.

The theme of World Meteorological Day 2009 is "Weather, Climate and the Air We Breathe", which aims to call attention to climate change and air quality.

The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its fourth climate change assessment report in 2007, which determined that the large amount of greenhouse gases emitted by human activities is the main cause of global climate change.

The IPCC also predicts that as climate change intensifies, the frequency and intensity of floods, droughts and other weather and climate extreme events will increase.

In addition, weather, climate and air quality are also closely related to human health. Particulate matter and related pollutants in the air can harm the human respiratory system and heart, causing people to suffer from asthma, heart disease, lung cancer and other diseases.

World Weather Watch

The possibilities opened up by the new satellite technology led to the adoption of the World Weather Watch Network programme for the fourth World Meteorology held in April 1963. 

The programme is a worldwide system composed of various coordinated facilities and services provided by WMO members and supplemented by international organizations.

According to the plan and implementation plan of the World Weather Monitoring Network, environmental satellites constitute the space-based subsystem of the global observing system to expand the information provided by the land-based subsystem to complete the complete global observation.

There are currently two types of environmental satellites:

1. Near-polar orbit satellites
2. Geostationary satellites

The two types of environmental satellites are largely complementary to each other. Geostationary satellites provide almost continuous measurement and monitoring at tropical and temperate latitudes, while near-polar orbit satellites play a similar role at higher latitudes and polar regions.

For details of these satellites, see WMO Publication No. 411. Polar orbit satellites at an altitude of 8,000 to 10,000 kilometers include the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration series of Tyros satellites and the Russian Federation's meteorological satellite series.

Each of these systems has two practical satellites in orbit at any time. The third-generation US practical polar-orbit satellite provides and research data. 

The sensors on these satellites are Terros practical vertical detectors composed of high-resolution radiometers.

Tyros practical vertical detector is composed of high-resolution infrared detector, stratospheric detection device and microwave detection device.

The data provided by Tyros practical vertical detectors and advanced very high resolution radiometers are provided by direct detection transmission, automatic image transmission and high-resolution image transmission services to all members with satellite receiving equipment.

In addition, the Teros satellite is also used for Argos data acquisition and positioning tasks. Satellite data is distributed to the global telecommunications system of the World Weather Watch.

Future plans for the American polar orbit system include the continued use of advanced Tyros N / Noah systems (Noah K, L and M, N, N’and NPOESS) for the next millennium.

Meteorology-2 / 3 meteorological satellite system forms the basis of the practical polar orbit satellite service of the Russian Federation, providing visible and infrared images of clouds and snow covers and ice sheets.

The system also provides data on the temperature and altitude of the cloud, and the temperature and intensity of outward longwave radiation. These data are processed and distributed to the global telecommunications system in images and other forms.

Geostationary satellites include five satellites at the following positions above the equator:

140 ° east longitude, operated by Japan

76 ° east longitude, operated by the Russian Federation.

0 °, operated by the European Meteorological Satellite Application Organization and 75 ° west longitude, and 135 west longitude °, operated by the United States. 

Regional Training Centers

The World Meteorological Organization Regional Training Center was approved by the World Meteorological Organization and was established in 1993 at Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology (formerly Nanjing Meteorological College). Meteorological science and technology personnel and management personnel.

By the end of 2009, the Nanjing Regional Training Center of the World Meteorological Organization had organized 40 international meteorological training courses and 11 bilateral training courses.

More than 900 trainees from 119 countries and regions including Asia-Pacific, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and Eastern Europe participated in the training, becoming the cradle of senior meteorological professionals in developing countries and making great contributions to the development of the world's meteorology Contribution.

The director of the training center is concurrently chaired by Professor Li Lianshui, president of Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology.

The center has two parts, teaching and administrative institutions, in charge of teaching and daily work during the training period.

The function of the administrative agency is to ensure the smooth development and implementation of the entire training plan, including: strengthening contact with the China Meteorological Administration, formulating a training plan, publishing enrollment information, answering student applications, and arranging and adjusting daily affairs and activities during the training.

Since the establishment of the training center, according to the development of meteorological technology and the different requirements of domestic and foreign meteorological services, the training time ranges from two to 13 weeks, and the content involves all aspects of the meteorological profession.

WMO training courses mainly include:

Meteorological administration, tropical meteorology, interpretation of numerical forecast products, long-term weather forecast, radar meteorology, satellite meteorology, agricultural meteorology, climatology, monsoon meteorology, artificial weather, use and maintenance of meteorological instruments, aeronautical meteorology and climate change and their predictions.

Capacity building activities by World Meteorological Organization, WMO

In addition to providing hydrological services with published WMO guidance materials, WMO also pays special attention to the transfer of existing technology through a multi-purpose subprogramme of hydrological utility.

The sub-programme currently has 24 components covering remote sensing and data transmission.

At least 32 users, mainly those from developing countries, have made requests for use. Such assistance has developed rapidly, especially through various technical assistance projects implemented by WMO.

The success of the WMO programme depends largely on the ability to strengthen national meteorological, hydrometeorological and hydrological services, especially those in developing countries. Therefore, WMO education and training activities remain a high priority.

Knowledge transfer in the management and use of satellite data is part of education and training programmes, including international training activities in various regions, and various training courses on the use and application of satellite data and remote sensing in various fields of meteorology and practical hydrology.

Many of them are implemented in close cooperation with other UN agencies and international organizations.

WMO is also engaged in the preparation of teaching materials and training materials for meteorologists in satellite meteorology, providing fellowships for meteorology and practical hydrology training, and organizing various regional training activities.

Every year, some projects are implemented in accordance with the WMO Voluntary Collaboration Program to provide automatic image transmission / weather fax test equipment, and auxiliary weather fax test equipment is also provided to existing automatic image transmission stations.

It also provides support for trainers to master the operation and maintenance technology of automatic image transmission stations.

Contact Point of World Meteorological Organization, WMO

Secretary-General

WorldMeteorologicalOrganization

41, avenueGiuseppeMotta

CasePostale2300

CH-1211Geneva2, Switzerland

Telegram: Meteomondgeneva

Publications of World Meteorological Organization, WMO

Bulletin

Bulletin, semi-annual: World Meteorological Congress reports, Executive Council reports, Regional Association reports, Regional Association reports, and "Technical Commission reports" and "Audit Committee reports".

"Meteorological and Other Environmental Satellite Information", WMO Publication No. 411.

World Climate News: World Climate News, published in English and French twice a year.

The report has 12 pages per issue and includes recent and ongoing climate events and anomalies, their impacts on socio-economics, and reports on WMO activities in climate-related applications and research.