Weather data collected through the Formosat-7 satellite system can now be downloaded through the Central Weather Bureau’s (CWB) Taiwan Analysis Center for COSMIC (TACC), the bureau said yesterday.
COSMIC stands for Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate.
The six micro-satellites, a Taiwan-US joint venture, were launched into space on June 25.
Photo courtesy of the Central Weather Bureau
The center yesterday started providing meteorological observation data for download after scientists spent five months testing, adjusting and certifying the system, the bureau said.
Meteorologists from around the world can now download data collected by the system from October to Sunday from the center’s Web site — tacc.cwb.gov.tw/v2/download.html.
Starting from Dec. 23, people can every other Monday download data collected the previous two weeks, it said.
The National Space Organization (NSPO), which is in charge of ensuring that the Formosat-7 system is functioning normally, said that the six satellites in the system carry the Tri-GNSS radio occultation system, which collects first-hand data from the atmosphere and ionosphere.
TACC then decodes and calculates the collected data, and releases information on the atmosphere’s temperature, humidity and electron concentration, NSPO said.
The weather bureau said that its weather forecast system had improved after it received the first batch of data from Formosat-7 on July 16.
“The satellite system is particularly strong in collecting data from mid and low-altitude regions. We are using it to improve our ability to monitor and forecast extreme weather and space weather,” the bureau said.
The bureau said that this would be a trial operation before the official launch next year, adding that scientists from both countries aim to improve the data quality based on users’ feedback.
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