SUNDAY, DICA
27, 1281
2
THE CORA SYSTEM COMPUTES, DECODES AND ANALYSE ZLATA AUTOMATICALLY AND THE RESULT IS FED INTO THE MAIN COMPUTER
AT THE ROYAL OBSERVATORY'S HEADQUARTERS FOR IMMEDIATE DISSEMI....ON.
THIS INSTANTANEOUS MONITORING OF UPPER AIR ATMOSPHERIC CONTIONS CONTRASTS SHARPLY WITH THE TWO HOURS REQUIRED FOR MANUAL COMPUTATION AND ANALYSIS C SIMILAR DATA WHICH WERE ALSO GATHERED WITH A RADIOSONDE UNDER THE OLD SYSTEM.
FURTHERMORE, IT USED TO TAKE FOUR TECHNICIANS TO RELEASE AND MONITOR ONE RADIÓSONDE-BALLOON RELEASED ONCE EVERY SIX HOURS, NOW IT REQUIRES ONLY TWO, ACCORDING TO MR Y.H. WOO, CHIEF EXPERIMENTAL OFFICER (UPPER AIR) AT THE METEOROLOGICAL STATION IN KING'S PARK.
BETWEEN 1921 AND 1950, A BALLOON WITH NO ATTACHMENTS WAS RELEASED TWICE DAILY BY THE OBSERVATORY AND TRACKED BY A THEODOLITE MOUNTED ON A TRIPOD. THIS METHOD, HOWEVER, GIVES ONLY WIND DIRECTION AND SPEED UP TO THE CLOUD BASE WHEREAS THE RADIOSONDE SOUNDINGS, STARTED AT THE OBSERVATORY'S STATION IN KING'S PARK IN 1951, HAVE A VERTICAL RANGE OF UP TO 30 000 METRES, MR WOO SAID.
DATA THUS COLLECTED COMBINED WITH THOSE PROVIDED DAILY BY THE OBSERVATORY'S COUNTERPARTS IN BEIJING, TOKYO AND BANGKOK AND OTHER INFORMATION COLLECTED FROM MANY OTHER SOURCES OVER A WIDE AREA - INCLUDING SHIPS, AIRCRAFT, LAND STATIONS AND P TRANSMITTED BY WEATHER SATELLITES - ENABLED THE OBSERVATOR MAKE WEATHER FORECASTS UP TO THREE DAYS AND TO TRACK TROPICAL CYCLONES IN THE WESTERN PACIFIC AND THE SOUTH CHINA SEA,
URES
THE OBSERVATORY HAS COME A LONG WAY SINCE IT WAS FOUNDED IN 1883 PRIMARILY TO ASSIST THE NAVIGATION OF SHIPPING IN THE REGION BY PROVIDING MAGNETIC MEASUREMENTS, METEOROLOGICAL DATA AND AN ACCURATE TIME SERVICE BASED ON ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATIONS. PREDICTING WEATHER CONDITIONS IN THOSE DAYS WAS VERY MUCH A HIT-OR-MISS+ AFFAIR. YET, ITS EARLIEST TYPHOON-WARNING SYSTEM - A CANNON FIRED AT THE TSIM SHA TSUI POLICE STATION - PROVED TO BE QUITE EFFECTIVE IN ITS DAY, IN VIEW OF THE SCARCITY OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS DEVICES AT THE TIME.
THE CANNON, HOWEVER, HAS BEEN MUZZLED SINCE 1939. SINCE THEN THE OBSERVATORY HAD NOT STOPPED STRIVING FOR CONSTANT IMPROVEMENT.
+IN FACT, WE HAVE MADE MAJOR ADVANCES IN NEARLY ALL ASPECTS OF OUR OPERATIONS AS A RESULT OF OUR ACQUISITION OF BETTER EQUIPMENT. THE UPGRADING OF SERVICE AND BETTER MANPOWER MANAGEMENT THROUGH THE INTRODUCTION OF NEW TECHNOLOGY HAS BEEN AND WILL CONTINUE TO BE THE TREND FOR THE OBSERVATORY, MR LI SAID.
SPEAKING OF ITS LESS +TRADITIONAL+ RESPONSIBILITIES, MR LI SAID THESE NOW ALSO INCLUDED STUDIES ON STORM SURGE EFFECTS BY COMPUTER SIMULATION OF STORM-DRIVEN CURRENTS FROM THE OPEN SEA TO THE COASTAL WATERS AND THE MONITORING OF RADIOACTIVITY OF THE ATMOSPHERE.
/THE FORMER