Every year on March 23, at the initiative of the World Meteorological Organization, under the auspices of the UN, World Meteorological Day is held, which has been celebrated since 1961, and the motto of the Day was the words: «Weather, climate and water in the information era».
On March 23, 1950, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Convention came into force, which proclaimed the formation of the Organization. Currently, 187 states and six territories are members of WMO. Russia has been a member of the organization since April 1948.
First of all, WMO deals with weather, climate and water issues, and the countries that are part of it have been successfully cooperating for many years, exchanging operational data on the state of the atmosphere, land, seas, oceans, rivers, on the basis of which weather forecasts and warnings are compiled about dangerous hydrometeorological phenomena.
WMO strengthens interaction between the national meteorological and hydrological services of its member countries and promotes the use of meteorology in public meteorological services, agriculture, aviation, shipping, the environment, water aspects and disaster mitigation. Among WMO –'s biggest achievements are the creation of a global climate research program and the creation of the World Weather Service.
WMO's main activity is to support countries in providing meteorological and hydrological services. In collaboration with other UN agencies and national meteorological and hydrological services, WMO supports the implementation of a number of environmental conventions and plays an important role in providing advice and assessments to governments on relevant issues. Such activities contribute to the sustainable development and well-being of nations.
And World Meteorological Day itself is held to raise awareness among the general public about the possible consequences of climate change. After all, today rapid climate change – is one of the most serious environmental problems facing humanity. This is manifested not only in changing weather conditions, rising/lowering temperatures, but can also lead to such destructive disasters as floods, droughts, tsunamis, etc.
Statistics accumulated over the past decade eloquently show that more than 80% of all natural disasters are of meteorological or hydrological origin.
In 2021, the Day was held under the motto «Ocean, our climate and weather» (Photo: Chaykovsky Igor, licensed by Shutterstock.com)
Therefore, every year this Day is dedicated to a topic and appropriate propaganda events are held. So, over the years it was held under the mottos: «Our future climate», «Weather, climate, water and sustainable development», «Danger prevention and mitigation of natural disasters», «Polar meteorology: understanding global impacts», «Observations of our planet for a better future», «Weather, climate and water — are the driving force of our future», «Understanding clouds», «Getting ready for the weather, taking into account climate», «Sun, Earth and weather», «Climate and water resources», «Ocean, our climate and weather», «Early warning and early action» and others.
In Russia, the official «start» system of hydrometeorological monitoring was given almost two centuries ago – in 1834, when, by decree of Emperor Nicholas I, the Normal Magnetic Meteorological Observatory was established in St. Petersburg. From that time on, the meteorological network of Russia began to conduct regular meteorological and magnetic observations under a single manual, and the date March 23 is currently celebrated as the Day of Workers of the Hydrometeorological Service of Russia.
• Infographics – poster «March 23 — World Meteorological Day»
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