B Sc Nautical Science Semester IV Meteorology II
B. Sc. Nautical Science • • Semester IV Meteorology – II Unit- 5 Weather Reports By Capt. Kumar
Objectives • At the end of this Lesson the students should be very familiar with: 1) What type of Weather Services are available Globally to assist the Mariners; 2) What are the roles of On-shore Meteorological offices in receiving and transmitting weather reports; 3) The practical operations of Facsimile and Digital receivers and its usefulness; 4) How to codify the weather observations for transmitting to the shore Meteorological stations; 5) Coding and Decoding of Weather messages; and 6) Weather reporting and recording procedures at sea.
Types of Weather Services for Shipping WMO- " The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations. It is the UN system's authoritative voice on the state and behaviour of the Earth's atmosphere, its interaction with the oceans, the climate it produces and the resulting distribution of water resources
National Weather Service Organization. Mission Statement • The Mission of the International Activities Office (IAO) of the U. S. National Weather Service is to enhance NOAA/NWS (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Weather Service) ability to provide the best weather, water, and climate forecasts through international cooperation on hydrometeorological observations, data exchange, modeling, research, and technology development; and to provide global leadership in setting meteorological standards and building partnerships to save lives and protect property.
• • Ocean Weather Services, USA Ocean Weather Services provides global ocean weather forecasts and ship routing services to the maritime industry. In addition, our weather experts provide accurate ocean storm and hurricane tracking services as well as professional marine meteorological research reports for admiralty lawyers and marine insurance companies. The following specific services are provided for Shipping: Weather Routing and Marine Weather Forecast: Global Ship Routing and vessel performance monitoring services for Commercial Shipping, Yacht and sailing weather forecast as well as coastal weather advice for tugs and barge operations. Vessel Performance Monitoring: Real-time or past voyage performance monitoring. services Weather Event Analysis: Detailed analysis of actual weather conditions reported at or near a given geographical location whether offshore or in port or inland. Voyage Reconstruction: Reconstruct the actual marine weather conditions and ocean currents encountered during a ship’s voyage with a comparison with the Ship’s Log entries. Marine Climatology: Review weather risks for marine operations at sea, along the coast or in port. Past Weather Records: Certified copies of actual weather observations and weather analysis charts. Tropical Cyclone Forecasts: The daily tropical notification service that provides your vessel updates on any tropical system that may threaten your voyage anywhere in the Atlantic or Pacific.
Marine (UK) Shipping forecast and gale warnings, inshore waters forecast and strong wind warnings, high seas forecast and storm warnings. • The Met Office provides a wide range of marine forecasts and warnings. In the UK, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is responsible for the provision of Maritime Safety Information (MSI) to ships at sea, which includes the broadcast of warnings and forecasts. This includes Navigation Warnings. The Met Office initiates warnings and prepares routine forecasts for dissemination on behalf of the MCA. Marine forecasts for printing and low-bandwidth devices (such as mobile phones) Caution: The internet is not part of the Maritime Safety Information system and should never be relied upon as the only means to obtain the latest forecast and warning information. Access to the service may be interrupted or delayed from time to time, updates may also be delayed. Please refer to GMDSS services, INMARSAT Safety NET or international NAVTEX for the latest information. When using these web pages, always check that the page on your screen is not from your cache. Use the Refresh or Reload button if in any doubt.
Weather Reporting System • Efficient weather service to shipping depends on the timely location and accurate tracking of weather systems over the open sea which covers over 70% of Earth’s surface. Overland it is easily possible to establish weather observation stations (Observatories) but over sea it is a major capital intensive operation with recurring expenses. It is, therefore, necessary for Merchant ships to send out regular reports of the weather experienced, even if weather is normal.
Weather Reporting and Recording Procedures, Weather observation Reports • Reporting System: As recommended by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) each Government recruits a number of Merchant ships called the Voluntary Observing Fleet (VOF). In case of India the Indian VOF consists of Indian ships and also Foreign flag ships which regularly call at Indian ports. Each vessel of the VOF makes weather observations at the fixed UTC (GMT) hours, called synoptic hours, codes these observations and transmits them using the ship’s terrestrial or space radio communication facilities as soon as possible. These messages are sent to any of the designated coast radio stations listed in the Admiralty List of Radio Signals Volume 3 (ALRS 3), which forwards them to the Regional Meteorological Data Collection Center, on a priority basis. The ship does not incur any expense at all. The respective National Weather Authority pays all relevant charges and also provides for all necessary equipment, publications and stationary used by the VOF.
• The Codes have been devised in such a manner that the messages can easily be electronically processed and stored to enable better forecast to be made. The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) collates all the reports of that area and makes weather forecasts, which are transmitted to ships of that area, as Weather Bulletins, through selected stations at fixed times using terrestrial or space radio communications facilities. Under normal conditions of weather, the synoptic hours are 00, 06, 12 and 18 UTC. In cases where there is inclement/disturbed weather, additional synoptic hours are 03, 09, 15 and 21 UTC. The coded weather messages should be transmitted as soon as possible, the time of observation, always being the time when the barometer reading is taken. In case any unusual but urgent weather phenomena are seen, a special message, in code or plain language may be sent out at anytime. In rare cases, as during a Tropical Revolving Storm (TRS) the RMC may request a ship in particular area for specific urgent observations which should be complied with by the Master.
• Meteorological Log books are supplied by the Regional Meteorological Office. All weather observations, at synoptic and special hours, must be recorded neatly and legibly in the Log book whether the message is transmitted or not. When each Logbook is completed, it is to be returned to the RMO who will compare the received messages with those recorded in the Log book to eliminate errors during transmission. The data from Log book are fed into computers for future use. • Classification of ships: - As per the recommendations of WMO, vessels of VOF are divided into 3 categories: 1) Selected Ships- A ship which is equipped with sufficient certified meteorological instruments for making observations and transmits the observations in the full code consisting of 18 to 21 groups. 2) Supplementary Ships- A ship which is equipped with a limited nos. of certified meteorological instruments for making observations and transmits the observations in the abbreviated form of the code consisting of 12 or more groups. 3) Auxiliary Ships- A ship normally not provided with certified meteorological instruments which transmits weather reports during disturbed weather or under a special request, in the reduced form of code consisting of 11 or more groups or in plain language.
Equipment supplied by Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) • Selected Ships- a) Barometer, b) Whirling Psychrometer, c) Weekly barograph recording, d) Sea-thermometer and e) Marine bucket. Supplementary ships- a) Barometer and b) Whirling Psychrometer. • N. B. Most ships decline to accept items d) and e) and prefer to obtain the sea water temperature from the Engine room i. e. taken at the cooling water intake from the sea. • Publications supplied by IMD: The IMD supplies the following Publications, free of charge, to Selected and Supplementary ships: - 1. Monthly Meteorological charts of the Indian Ocean; 2) Indian Ocean Current Charts; 3) Marine Observer’s Handbook; 4) International Cloud Atlas; 5) Ship’s Weather Code; 6) Weather services to Shipping, Fishing Vessels and Marine Interests; 7) Code of Storm Warning Signals; 8. Handbook of Cyclonic Storms in the Bay of Bengal; 9) Winds, Weather and Currents on the Coasts of India; and 10) State of Sea Card.
Meteorological Services and Warnings • Regulation 5 of chapter 5 titled ‘Meteorological services and Warnings’ of SOLAS 1974 as amended in 2000 makes it mandatory for contracting Governments to encourage the collection of meteorological data by ships at sea and to arrange for their examination, dissemination and exchange in the manner most suitable for the purpose of aiding Navigation. Administrations shall encourage the use of meteorological instruments of a high degree of accuracy, and shall facilitate the checking of such instruments upon request by the user ship. Arrangements may be made by appropriate national meteorological services for this checking to be undertaken, free of charge to the ship. In particular the contracting Governments undertake to carry out, in cooperation, the following meteorological arrangements: - To warn ships of Gales, storms and Tropical cyclones by issue of information (Warnings) in text and in graphic form (when practicable) using shore based facilities for terrestrial and space radio communications services; - To issue at least twice daily weather information suitable for shipping containing data, analysis, warnings and forecast of weather waves and ice;
• - To prepare and issue necessary publications for the efficient conduct of meteorological work at sea and making available daily weather charts for the information of departing ships; - To arrange for a selection of ships as per classification and to equip them with tested Marine meteorological instruments for sea surface synoptic observations; - To encourage Companies to involve as many of their ships as possible in active participation; When in the vicinity of a tropical cyclone ships should be encouraged to take and transmit their observations at more frequent intervals; - To arrange for the reception and transmission of weather messages from and to ships; - To encourage Masters to inform ships in the vicinity and also shore stations whenever they experience a wind speed of 50 Knots or more (Beaufort Scale 10); -To endeavour to obtain a uniform procedure in regard to the international meteorological services specified, as far as possible, in conformity with the technical regulations and recommendations made by the WMO.
Danger Messages • Regulation 31 of chapter 5 of SOLAS 1974 titled ‘Danger Messages’, as amended in 2000 make it mandatory for Master of every ship which meets with dangerous ice, a dangerous derelict or any other direct danger to Navigation, or a tropical storm or encounters sub-freezing air temperatures associated with gale force winds causing severe ice accretion on superstructures or wind force Beaufort scale 10 or above for which no storm warning has been received to communicate the information by all means at his disposal to ships in the vicinity, and also to the competent authorities. The information may be transmitted either in plain language in English or by means of International Code of signals. Each contracting Government will take all steps necessary to ensure that when intelligence of any of the dangers is received, it will be promptly brought to the knowledge of those concerned and communicated to other interested Governments. All such Danger messages shall be preceded by the safety signal TTT.
Information required in Danger Messages • Regulation 32 of Chapter V of SOLAS 1974, as amended in 2000, requires the following information in the danger messages: 1) Ice, derelicts, and other direct dangers to Navigation- i) The kind of Ice, derelict or other danger observed, ii) The position of the Ice, derelict or danger when observed; and iii) The time and date (UTC) when the danger was last observed. 2)Tropical Cyclones/Storms- i) A statement that a tropical cyclone has been encountered and whether it is developing or it exists in the neighbourhood; ii) Time, Date (UTC) and position of ship when the observation was taken. and iii) Maximum possible information should be included in the message about a) Barometric pressure (corrected/uncorrected), b) Barometric tendency (the change) in last 3 hours, c)True wind direction, d) Wind force (Beaufort scale), e) State of the sea(smooth, moderate, rough, high; f) Swell (slight, moderate, heavy) and the true direction from where it comes. Period or length of swell (short, average, long) would also be of value; and g) Ship’s True course and speed.
Subsequent observations • -It is desirable, but not obligatory, that further observations be made and transmitted hourly, if practicable, but in any case at intervals of not more than 3 hours, so long as the ship remains under the influence of the storm. -Wind force of 10 or above for which no storm warning has been received. In this message details of sea and swell may not be included. -Sub-freezing air temperatures associated with gale force winds causing severe ice accretion on superstructures. Information to include Date and time (UTC), Air temperature, sea temperature (if possible) and wind force and direction.
• The India Meteorological Department (IMD), also referred to as the Met Department, is an agency of the Ministry of Earth Sciences of the Government of India. It is the principal agency responsible for meteorological observations, weather forecasting and seismology. IMD is headquartered in New Delhi and operates hundreds of observation stations across India and Antarctica. • IMD is also one of the six Regional Specialised Meteorological Centres of the World Meteorological Organization. It has the responsibility forecasting, naming and distribution of warnings for tropical cyclones in the Northern Indian Ocean region, including the Malacca Straits, the Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea and the Persian Gulf.
Organization: IMD Headquarters at New Delhi
• IMD is headed by the Director General of Meteorology. Dr. Laxman Singh Rathore, renowned agro-meteorologist is Director General of Meteorology. IMD has 6 Regional Meteorological Centers, each under a Deputy Director General. These are located in Chennai, Guwahati, Kolkata, Mumbai, Nagpur and New Delhi. There also Meteorological Centres in every state capital. Other IMD units such as Forecasting Offices, Agro meteorological Advisory Service Centers, Flood Meteorological Offices, Area Cyclone Warning Centers and Cyclone Warning Centers are usually co-located with various observatories or meteorological center.
• IMD operates a network of hundreds of surface and glacial observatories, Upper Air (high altitude) stations, ozone and radiation observatories and meteorological radar stations. Additional data is received from India's constellation of satellites, such as Kalpana-1, Megha-Tropiques and instruments on board the IRS series and the INSAT series of satellites. Data and observations are also reported into the IMD network from meteorological instruments on board Indian merchant marine and Indian Navy ships. IMD was the first organization in India to deploy a message switching computer for supporting its global data exchange. IMD collaborates with other agencies such as the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting and the National Institute of Ocean Technology. IMD also operates seismic monitoring centres at key locations for earthquake monitoring and measurements.
Tasks • IMD undertakes observations, communications, forecasting and weather services. In collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organization, the IMD also uses the IRS series and the Indian National Satellite System (INSAT) for weather monitoring of the Indian subcontinent. IMD was the first weather bureau of a developing country to develop and maintain its own satellite system. IMD is one of the 6 worldwide Regional Specialized Meteorological Centres of the Tropical Cyclone Programme of the World Weather Watch of the World Meteorological Organization. . It is regional nodal agency forecasting, naming and disseminating warnings about tropical cyclone in the Indian Ocean north of the Equator.
Indian Meteorological Department • SERVICES FOR SHIPPING AND FISHRIES For the benefit of the ships sailing on high seas and for coastal and fishing craft, weather bulletins are issued four times daily by the Area Cyclone Warning Centers at Mumbai, Calcutta and Chennai and the Cyclone Warning Centers at Ahmadabad, Bhubaneswar and Vishakhapatnam. When there is a depression or cyclonic storm over the Bay of Bengal or Arabian Sea, the bulletins are issued more often during the course of the day and special warnings are issued for fishermen advising them not to venture out into the sea. The bulletins are broadcast through AIR and coastal radio stations. Fishermen’s associations also play an active role in disseminating fishermen’s warnings. System of Port Warning Signals has been established at all major Indian ports, which are hoisted to warn the ships about impending danger from approaching storms. IMD has Port Meteorological Offices at major ports in the country. Officers from these units visit Ships while in harbour to check and calibrate the meteorological instruments on board and to provide meteorological information to ships about to sail.
A REPORT ON REALIZED WEATHER, WIND, VISIBILITY AND WAVE HEIGHT OVER INDIAN SEAS, DATED 03 rd. JAN 2016(FOR 24 HRS W. E. F 0900 UTC OF 02 -01 -2016) • • • • AI: ARABIANSEA: - EQUATOR TO 10° N AND W OF 80° E. I) WIND DIRECTION AND SPEED: - 1) N OF 05°N: NE-LY 10 -15 KTS 2) S OF 05°N: NE/E-LY 05 -10 KTS II) WEATHER: SCATTERED RA/TS. III) VISIBILITY: 6 - 4 NM. IV) WAVE HEIGHT: 1) 1 - 2 MTR 2) 0. 5 -1 MTR A 2: ARABIAN SEA: - N OF 10°N & CAPE GARDAFUI TO 12°N/ 63°E & THENCE TO THE EAST UPTO 23° 45’N/68°E. I) WIND DIRECTION AND SPEED: - MAINLY NE/E-LY 10 -15 KTS. II) WEATHER: FAIR. III) VISIBILITY: 10 - 8 NM. IV) WAVE HEIGHT: 1 - 2 MTR.
• A 3: - BAY OF BENGAL: EQUATOR TO 10°N BETWEEN E OF 80°E AND W OF 10°N 98° 30’E • TO 6°N 95°E AND THENCE S WARDS TO EQUATOR. S OF 05°N • • I) WIND DIRECTION AND SPEED: - 1) W OF 90°E: - ENE-LY 15 - 20 KTS. • 2) E OF 90°E: - NE-LY 10 - 15 KTS. • • II) WEATHER: ISOLATED RA/TS. • III) VISIBILITY: 8 - 6 NM. • • IV) WAVE HEIGHT: 1) 2 - 3 MTR. • 2) 1 - 2 MTR • A 4: BAY OF BENGAL: N OF 10° N AND E OF 80° E. • I) WIND DIRECTION AND SPEED: - NE-LY 10 - 15 KTS. • II) WEATHER: FAIR. • III) VISIBILITY: 10 - 8 NM. • IV) WAVE HEIGHT: 1 - 2 MTR. • • *KTS: Knots, NM: Nautical Mile, MTR: Meter, RA/TS: Rain /Thundershower
Weather Facsimile Receiver • The facsimile recorder is an instrument that reproduces on board a ship. an exact copy of a weather map drawn by a Meteorologist ashore in the local Meteorological office. The meteorological office/centre receives weather reports from all stations- land stations, weather ships and ships of Voluntary Observing Fleet etc, and a Meteorologist draws a Weather Maps. The map is then scanned electronically and transmitted by high frequency waves using the FM (Frequency Modulation) technique, to ensure much clearer and relatively static-free reception on board ship. Facsimile charts fall into two basic categories- Analysis/Synopsis and Prognosis. Analysis or Synopsis is the actual situation existent at a given time, based on actual reports received. Prognosis is the predicted situation at a specified future time, based on present indications, as deducted by an expert Meteorologist/expert on the subject, based on his knowledge, skill and experience.
WEATHER FAXIMILE RECEIVER Model FAX-410
• Reliable weather facsimile receiver gathers and generates crucial information under all weather conditions at sea The FAX-410 is a marine weather facsimile receiver designed to receive and print high quality, high definition weather charts and satellite images, which are transmitted from onshore stations located around the world. Features • Automatic channel selection by judging the quality of signal reception • All known facsimile channels in 2 -25 MHz bands are preprogrammed: 150 channels • Additional memory capacity of 164 user-programmable channels available • Full automatic operation by a built-in schedule timer • Quiet thermal printing due to minimal mechanical components • 10" wide thermal recording paper with clear and easy-to-watch weather charts and satellite images in nine gray levels
• • • Specifications: GENERAL Frequency Range 2 -25 MHz in 100 Hz steps Number of Channel 150 pre-programmed channels and 164 channels for memory Class of Emission F 3 C Power Supply AC model: 100/115/200/230 VAC DC model: 12 -24 VDC
Digital Weather Receiver: (Main properties) • WX-200 Weather Receiver • The WX-200 is a highly sensitive, quality receiver, with good front-end protection designed to function in the high RF environment typical of many repeater sites. A digital decoder responds to Specific Area Message Encoded (SAME) alerts transmitted by the NOAA weather station located in your geographic area. Select your county code and the type of alert. • Select warnings and or watches. During a weather alert, a relay in the WX 200 will disconnect the transmitter from the controller and connect it to the weather receiver. The relay provides a ground for the transmitter PTT line. Weather audio will be transmitted for the period of the alert announcement. A programmable alert timer provides back-up protection. • Weather Alert Log • As alerts are received the WX-200 stores the date, time and type of alert in non- volatile memory. Storage space is provided forty alerts. Use the RS-232 port and the WX-200 configuration program to down load the data. A print driver is also provided. • Alert Start Logic Output (J 3 -7) • An ALERT START output provides a TTL logic high two second pulse when a weather alert is received. This output can be used to set off an external alarm or trigger the controller to execute a macro or load a “SEVERE WEATHER ALERT” memory save.
INSAT Images of India: Weather Satellite Images and Maps of India
Coding and decoding of weather messages: (Ship’s Weather Code 1982) • • • • Specifications of Symbolic Letters and Code Groups- (Use Code Tables) BBXX Identification of report from (AAXX Report from a Land station) D-----D Identity of ship (Call sign) YYGGiw YY- Day of Month, GG- Hour of day (GMT). iw- 3 (wind sp. in Knots) T-1 99 La. La 99 -Indicator, La. La- Latitude in tenth of a degree Qc. Lo. Lo Qc- Quadrant of the globe, Lo. Lo. Lo- Long. In 10 th of a degree(T-2) i. Rixh. VV i. R-Indicator for inclusion or omission of precipitation data (T-3) (3 - most ships do not observe rain) ix- Type of station operation (manned/automatic) Normally 1 -3 for ships and for inclusion of present and past weather (according to state of weather) (T- 4) h Base of lowest cloud (T-5) VV Horizontal visibility in Meters or Kilometers (Code figure 90 to 99) (T- 6) Nddff N- Total cloud cover (Code figure 0 to 9) (T-7) dd- True wind direction in tenth of degrees (Code figure 00 to 99) (T-8) ff- Wind speed in units indicated by iw (T- 9)
• • • • • • 1 Sn. TTT 1 - Indicator figure Sn- Sign of temperature (0 -for +ve of zero tempearature, 1 for –ve temperature)(T-10) TTT- Air emperature in tenths of a degree Celsius 2 Sn. Td. Td 2 - Indicator figure Sn Sign of temperature (T- 10) Td. Td- Dew point temperature in tenths of degree Celsius. (Appenix-47/48) 4 PPPP 4 - Indicator figure PPPP- Pressure in tenths of a millibar (T- 11) 5 appp 5 - Indicator figure a-Characteristic of pressure tendency during last 3 hrs preceding the observation. (T-12) ppp- Amount of pressure tendency/change 7 ww. W 1 W 2 7 - Indicator figure ww- Present weather (Only if observed/significant otherwise omit)(T-13 ) W 1 W 2 – Past weather (Only if observed/significant otherwise omit)(T- 14) N. B. Code figures 00, 01, 02 & 03 of ww and code figure 0, 1& 2 of W 1 W 2 shall be considered to represent phenomenon without significance. 8 Nh. CLCMCH 8 - Indicator figure Nh- Amt of individual significant cloud layer whose height is given under h(T-7) CL- Type of Low Cloud (T-15) See Notes under relevant Table CM- Type of Medium cloud (T- 16) “ “ “ CH- Type of High Cloud (T- 17) “ “ “
222 DSVS 222 - Indicator Figure • DS- Ship’s Course Made Good during the last 3 hour (T- 18) • VS- Ship’s Speed made good during the last 3 hour (T- 19) 0 Sn. Tw Tw. T w 0 - Indicator figure • Sn- Sign of Temperature (T- 10) • Tw Tw. T w – Temperature of sea surface in tenths d a degree • Celsius (T- 10) 2 Pw. Hw. Hw 2 - Indicator figure • Pw. Pw- Period of waves in seconds (T- 20) • Hw. Hw- Height of waves in units of 0. 5 meter (T- 21) 3 dw 1 dw 2 3 - Indicator figure • dw 1 - Direction of first swell (T- 8) • dw 2 – Direction of second swell (T- 8) 4 Pw 1 P w 2 Pw 2 4 - Indicator figure • Pw 1 P w 1 - Period of first swell (T- 20) • P w 2 Pw 2 - Period of second swell (T- 20) 5 Hw 1 Hw 2 5 - Indicator figure • Hw 1 - Height of first swell (T- 21) • Hw 2 – Height of second swell (T- 21)
• • • 6 ISES ESRS 6 - Indicator figure IS – Ice accretion on ships (T-22) When ice accretion on ships is reported in plain Language it shall be preceded by word ICING. ESES- Thickness of Ice accretion on ships in centimeters. RS – Rate of Ice accretion on ships (T- 23) (ICE + (Plain language) or ci. Sibi. Dizi ci- Concentration or arrangement of sea ice (T- 24) Si- Statement of development of Ice (T-25) bi- Ice of Land origin (T- 26) Di- Bearing of principal edge of Ice (T- 27) zi - Present Ice situation and trend of conditions over preceding 3 hours (T- 28) ____________ SYNOP Code is very similar to the Ship’s Weather Code with minor differences as under: 1) BBXX is replaced by AAXX 2) Group D. …D is omitted. 3) Group 222 DSVS is coded as 222//. 4) Position groups 99 La La. La & Qc. Lo. Lo are replaced by on e Group IIiii, where in; II indicates the region of the world in which the station is situated, e. g. Europe and Asia= 00 to 49, India north of 20 N= 42 and south of 20°N = 43, North and central America= 70 to 79. And iii indicates the identity of the Land station that made the report. On Weather maps, the regional block number and the corresponding three-digit identity group of each station is already printed, each in it’s correct place. ___________
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