Context: Recently, the Union Cabinet has approved 'Mission Mausam' with a budget of Rs 2,000 crore over two years. 

• This initiative aims to significantly enhance India's capabilities in weather and climate-related science and services.

About Mission Mausam

• Launched by: Ministry of Earth Sciences

• Implemented by: Mission Mausam will be primarily implemented by three key institutes under the Ministry of Earth Sciences: the India Meteorological Department, the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, and the National Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting.

• Aim: Mission Mausam aims to enhance India’s capacity in weather and climate science, research, and services.

• Focus: The mission will focus on advancing atmospheric sciences, weather surveillance, forecasting, and climate management.

• Objective: To strengthen the ability of communities, sectors, and ecosystems to respond to extreme weather events and climate change.

Features

• The mission will integrate next-generation radars, satellite systems with advanced sensors, and high-performance computing for more precise weather predictions.

• Artificial intelligence, machine learning, and improved Earth system models will be used for accurate weather prediction.

• It uses a GIS-based automated system for real-time data dissemination and data-driven decision-making.

Focus Areas

• It focuses on providing accurate and timely weather and climate information, including monsoon forecasts, air quality alerts, extreme weather event warnings, and cyclone tracking.

• It also focuses on solutions for managing fog, hail, rain, and other weather conditions to mitigate their impacts.

Sectoral Benefits

• Agriculture: Timely weather forecasts and interventions will directly aid farming practices and crop management.

• Disaster Management: Enhanced predictive capabilities will help mitigate the effects of extreme weather events.

• Multiple Sectors: Other beneficiaries include defence, aviation, water resources, power, tourism, shipping, transport, energy, and health sectors.

Need for 'Mission Mausam' in India

• Predicting weather events with a high level of accuracy has become increasingly important in India, one of the most vulnerable nations to climate change. It allows the country to better prepare - from issuing early heat and rain warnings to coordinating power supplies to guiding farmers on how to protect their crops.

• Vulnerability: Almost 58.6 percent of the landmass is prone to earthquakes of moderate to very high intensity; over 40 million hectares (12 per cent of land) are prone to floods and river erosion; of the 7,516 km long coastline, close to 5,700 km is prone to cyclones and tsunamis; 68 per cent of the cultivable area is vulnerable to drought and hilly areas are at risk from landslides and avalanches.

• Increased Frequency of Extreme Weather Events: Extreme weather events like heatwaves and cloudbursts, which were rare in the past, are now happening throughout the year, highlighting the need for accurate forecasts.

• Climate-Induced Vagaries: Climate change has led to severe and unexpected weather conditions such as Wayanad landslide and lake bursts in Sikkim, Uttarakhand, underscoring the necessity for improved weather prediction.

• Need for Hyper-Local Weather Data: There is a growing demand for precise weather forecasts at very local levels for specific needs like farming and daily activities.

• Increased Intensity of Rainfall: The frequency and intensity of heavy, localized rainfall have surged, making accurate weather predictions crucial to manage water resources and prevent flooding.

• For accurate forecasting: In tropical countries like India, weather variability is inherently higher. IMD’s forecasts have improved vastly in the last few years as it has upgraded to technologies similar to the ones used by the U.S., the U.K. and Japan. Yet, there are still many days and geographies for which Indian forecasts go wrong, especially during winter and summer monsoon.

Challenges in weather forecasting

• Lack of weather monitoring ground stations: Currently, IMD operates around 800 automatic weather stations (AWS), 1,500 automatic rain gauges (ARG) and 37 doppler weather radars (DWR). This is against the total requirements of more than 3,00,000 ground stations (AWS/ARG) and around 70 DWRs.

• Dependency on global system: Currently, most of the prediction software used in forecasting are based on the global forecasting system and weather research and forecasting models, both of which are not the most modern.

Recent Initiatives for Weather Forecasting

• IMD: India, at present, depends on satellite data and computer models for weather prediction. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) uses the INSAT series of satellites and supercomputers.

• Insat-3DS is a third-generation weather satellite to augment meteorological services and improve the accuracy of weather forecasts in the country.

• IMD has been recognised as one of the six Regional Specialized Meteorological Centres of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). IMD has contributed to the United Nations’ ‘Early Warning for All’ programme regarding climate change.

• Forecasters use satellite data around cloud motion, cloud top temperature, and water vapour content that help in rainfall estimation, weather forecasting, and tracking cyclones.

• Monsoon Mission: the government launched the mission in 2012 to improve the long-range monsoon forecasts that are crucial for the government’s economic planning.

• Winter Fog Experiment (WIFEX): IMD developed the system to help in the dissemination of fog information, which is used by airlines and passengers to plan their travel.

• IMD’s SAFAR system: It is used to monitor air pollution level in major cities such as Delhi.

• Weather information network and data system (WINDS): A program to generate long-term, hyper-local weather data. 

• National Framework for Climate Services (NFCS): Modeled after the Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS) adopted by the UN in 2012, it aims to increase climate forecasting and enhance the accessibility of weather data.

• Panchayat-level weather forecasts: IMD launched panchayat-level weather forecasts in 12 Indian languages to provide weather information directly to the farmers in every gram panchayat.