Source: Xinhua
05-06-2009 14:22
Special Report: Tech MaxBEIJING, May 5 (Xinhuanet) -- Scientists said Monday a new set of buoys across the Indian Ocean will help farmers predict the monsoon rains and droughts in some of the world's poorest areas.
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| Scientists said Monday a new set of buoys across the Indian Ocean will help farmers predict the monsoon rains and droughts in some of the world's poorest areas.(File photo) |
"The data from these buoys will provide us with much-needed information to advance our understanding of the oceanic and atmospheric processes that govern the monsoons," said Michael McPhaden, an oceanographer at NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle.
"We want to improve computer models for seasonal forecasting to benefit farming communities and other weather-sensitive sectors of society," McPhaden said.
The buoys measure wind, rainfall, temperature and other figures around the Indian Ocean, which has lagged behind the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans in data collection.
Monsoon rains in Africa, southern Asia, and Australia are critical for growing the food that supports a third of the world's population. However, these seasonal rains are irregular, sometimes leaving an area parched by drought in one year and inundated by floods in the next year. The ability for scientists to accurately predict monsoon conditions even one season into the future would greatly improve farmers' chances for successful harvests.
The international project to set up buoys across the Indian Ocean began in earnest in 2004. It has moored 22 buoys so far with plans to put down all 46 by 2012.
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Editor:Yang Jie
