In summer, besides bringing rain to the earth, typhoons sometimes also make an appearance. On the eve of a typhoon's arrival, most people gather in front of various media outlets, hoping for news about the possibility of a "typhoon holiday" the next day, eagerly looking forward to stealing a few hours of leisure amidst the wind and rain. The fervent discussions sparked by the chances of a "typhoon holiday" ignite public interest in predicting the typhoon's path and intensity. However, the weather can change rapidly in nature, making it challenging to predict accurately. How do meteorological agencies precisely forecast the future trajectory and strength of typhoons?
Intelligent Meteorological Monitoring Assistant
When predicting a typhoon's path, meteorologists need to analyze observational data in detail, including data from local and nearby automatic weather stations, radar images, and reports from various meteorological centers regarding the typhoon, all to grasp its latest position and intensity. However, as weather data increases rapidly, relying solely on human effort to process this massive amount of information is not feasible. Therefore, the "Intelligent Meteorological Monitoring Assistant" system developed by the observatory utilizes artificial intelligence technology to simulate how meteorological experts handle big weather data. The system can collect over 530,000 data points from various sources in just 20 seconds and filter out valuable information to assist forecasters in monitoring the latest developments of the typhoon.
Tropical Cyclone Information Processing System
In addition to meteorological data, forecasters also need to analyze typhoon path predictions generated by major global computer models. However, the spatial resolutions of these models and their simulations of atmospheric physical processes differ, leading to varied predictions. Therefore, when forecasting typhoon paths, the observatory employs the "Tropical Cyclone Information Processing System" to automatically collect and process path forecasts from various computer models, calculating a comprehensive "integrated path" from these forecasts to facilitate comparison and prediction by forecasters. Through artificial intelligence analyzing this big data, forecasters can enhance their predictions, combining professional experience to formulate an accurate typhoon forecast path.
In this data-driven era, with the maturation of artificial intelligence technology and the enhancement of computing power, Numerical Weather Prediction has become one of the indispensable tools for weather forecasting. In fact, by effectively utilizing artificial intelligence's machine learning and data, you, as a student, can also build a weather forecasting model and become a weather prediction expert!
Want to test your skills? Join the Master Code 2022/23’ Competition co-organized by Hong Kong Education City, Microsoft, the Hong Kong Observatory, and the Hong Kong Meteorological Society. Use machine learning to analyze real meteorological data and forecast the weather, competing with the observatory!