Kathmandu, October 13

The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology has imported weather equipment worth Rs 90 million from Germany.

According to DHM, all imported equipment are awaiting customs clearance at Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu.

Director General at DHM Rishi Ram Sharma said the equipment will be installed at specific locations. “Equipment worth approximately Rs 90 million have arrived from Germany. These equipment will help DHM make reliable weather prediction,” Sharma told The Himalayan Times.

Earlier, two teams of meteorologists visited Germany and Slovakia in July this year to check weather equipment.

DHM had sent the team of meteorologists Shanti Kandel and Sujan Koirala to Germany and another team of meteorologists comprising Shiva Nepal and Chiranjivi Bhetwal to Slovakia.

With the arrival of these equipment, preparation is on to fly radiosonde balloons at the Kirtipur-based weather station.

According to DHM, once the weather balloon flies from radiosonde station it moves 18 to 20 metres above the ground level within half-an-hour. DHM plans to fly one balloon every day. It costs 150 US dollars to fly a balloon.

Radiosonde balloons will also be flown from Biratnagar and Surkhet later.

DHM claimed that once the Kirtipur-based weather station comes into operation,  it would be able to make weather forecasts with 100 per cent accuracy.

While most of the countries in the world have applied High Performance Computer Modeling System that gives weather forecasts that are up to 100 per cent accurate, Nepal has been relying on 24-hour short-range forecasting system that at best gives 75 per cent accuracy.

Three types of weather prediction systems are widely used to predict weather at both the local and global levels.