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| Satellites are absolutely necessary for weather forecasting, in addition to radar and AMeDAS [the Automated Meteorological Data Acquisition System]. Without them, today's weather forecasting is impossible. Some people actually suggest that we can use either radar or weather satellites alone, because radar can monitor rain clouds. But the thing is, radar only observes by emitting radio waves over the rainy area, whereas satellites, by using infrared rays, can measure temperature across a wider area, and gauge the altitude and distribution of clouds. The advantage of weather satellites is the capability of collecting more diverse data. |
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AMeDAS
Automated Meteorological Data Acquisition System. The system was deployed across Japan in 1974 by the Meteorological Agency, to obtain more detailed data from all areas of the country. AMeDAS has 1300 observation stations. |
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Radar
Weather radar measures the intensity and location of precipitation in the atmosphere.
Radar sends out short-wave radio signals, and receives waves reflected back from precipitation particles(i.e. raindrops or snowflakes).
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| It is far better now than it used to be. Computers were not in practical use until the early 1970s, so we used to forecast weather by drawing weather charts by hand based on observation data. Forecasting started to improve in 1977, when the weather satellite Himawari-1(GMS-1) was launched, and accuracy make progress when digital forecasting was fully implemented in the1980s. I would describe the time when I started my career, around 1970, as walking speed, and then, skipping airplanes, the post-1990s would be like rocket speed. |
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Digital Forecasting
Atmospheric observation data -wind speed and direction, pressure, temperature, and quantity of water vapor- is entered into physical equations, and calculated by supercomputer.
Forecasting with a weather chart requires a specialist who has a good understanding of the three-dimensional structure of the atmosphere and significant knowledge and experience in the field. Digital forecasting, on the other hand, provides more objective analysis, and as a result is more widely used.
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When it comes to the accuracy of weather forecasting, we forecasters are all aware that people are listening closely. We know how critical they are when we are wrong. So the way you do your commentary reveals your skill. When you're really not sure if it's going to rain or not, you might want to speak as vaguely as possible like, "Did they tell me it would rain? Yeah, maybe they did." You might think this is cheating, but it is absolutely a technique. But a weather forecast could play a big role in someone's life, so when we think there is the possibility of an accident due to weather, like with a snowfall for example, we put emphasis on that. It's also a matter of the commentator's skill not to miss any sign that could lead to an accident or disaster, so it's important to be able to recognize as many different weather patterns as possible.
Short-term weather forecasting is becoming extremely precise, but the skills of forecasters are somewhat lagging in terms of the precision of their commentary. Depending on your technique, even if you are saying "possibly," listeners may be hearing "definitely." So, it's important to learn good speaking techniques.
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