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Benefits to Society
The potential economic benefits of more accurate weather forecasts are immense.
For example, a more accurate 24-hour forecast of heavy rain and
thunderstorms along a cold front could allow airline dispatchers enough
time to reroute their airplanes appropriately and thereby help alleviate
costly delays. Being able to pinpoint a wintertime low temperature in
Florida could be the deciding factor in whether orange grove farmers
make the correct decision regarding deployment or non-deployment of
freeze prevention methods to save their crops. Better information on
wind patterns could aid the National Hurricane Center in producing a
more accurate forecast of a hurricane’s track and might enable a
reasoned decision to be made regarding evacuating thousands of families
out of Miami or Jacksonville. In military operations, there is a
considerable historical record of instances when weather conditions have
altered the course of battles, including examples when accurate
forecasting has been a deciding factor in one side’s victory.
Sample crops that could benefit from more accurate
weather forecasts aiding farmers in selecting harvesting times and in
protecting their crops from freezing temperatures.
Closing
Only fifty years ago, weather forecasting was an art, derived from
the inspired interpretation of data from a loose array of land-based
observing stations, balloons, and aircraft. Since then it has evolved
substantially, based on an array of satellite and other observations and
sophisticated computer models simulating the atmosphere and sometimes
additional elements of the Earth’s climate system. All this has been
made possible by advances in satellite technology, a sweeping
acceleration in worldwide communications, and overwhelming increases in
computing power. Aqua’s AIRS/AMSU/HSB combination should further these
advances, enabling more accurate predictions over longer periods.
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Weather Forecasting Through the Ages
Introduction
Early History
Towards Numerical Prediction
Modern Tools of the Trade
The Aqua Spacecraft
Benefits to Society
References
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