HYDERABAD: American weather expert Elzibeth C Weatherhead, who was here in the city on Monday believes that global weather forecasting has been getting better with effective communication and information sharing between countries, based on which the final predictions are declared globally.
Weatherhead, a senior scientist with the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Science at the University of Colorado in Boulder, US, pointed out how weather related mobile apps are more popular than Facebook (FB) in the US. The US consulate has organised an interaction at the American Corner in St Francis College for women in the city.
Weather forecasting is very popular in the US. Weather radios, TV stations, smart phones etc. easily identify the needs of people and disseminate the information, she said. “If you see the smartphone users in the US, it would be weather apps and not FB that is more popular. The private sectors are also playing a significant role in spreading awareness about weather forecast,” she noted.
An active member of the American Meteorological Society, she explains observations about changes in boundary layers which are closest to the earth surface. Cyclones are formed in this layer about one km away from the surface in the atmosphere.
While noting that solution for climate change is reduction of carbon emission, she pointed out that each country should work on developing solutions according to their needs and characteristics.
Weatherhead, who works in collaboration with the Global Systems Division of the Earth System Research Laboratory at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, also believes that atmospheric and environmental science is slowly growing in popularity among youth. Universities in general would not be able to afford the kind of computers required in weather forecasting, but students always can do research with institutes, she said.
On the crisis of global warming and effective use of renewable energy, both of which are her areas of research interest, she said, “Moving exclusively to renewable energy is going to be very expensive. So, the only solution is left to use less electricity.”
Her research includes improving global weather forecasting capabilities, renewable energy, and the role of research in making low carbon solutions an economically viable path.
