Our Proposal to PAG-ASA (2)

Secondly, PAG-ASA must start building affiliation with known international weather agencies and laboratories worldwide in order to gain access to valuable databases, information and knowledge archives in the field of meteorology, hydrology and even environment. This collaborative relationship will enrich PAG-ASA with vast amount of data that it can use in its operational forecasting and research objectives.

For example, a consortium of European enterprises and research centers from various disciplines funded and supported a research and development project collectively known as the SIMDAT which recently developed the Virtual Global Information System Centre (VGISC). IT is initially meant for the meteorological services of France, Germany and the UK but is likely to become a worldwide commodity. If PAG-ASA can have access to this VGISC which is a one-stop-shop IT solution system that provides the meteorological community users worldwide a secure and convenient access over the internet to a shared database of meteorological data, then aside from availing immediate analysis services, computational power and user-friendly platform for data storage, PAG-ASA through VGISC can also engage in interactive exchanges of data concerning weather forecasts, disaster management and research among users from all over the world.

VGSIC prevents multiplicity of systems, duplication of efforts, inefficiencies as well as incompatibilities which makes it an efficient and cost-effective IT solution for users not only in the field of weather forecasting but also in disciplines like automotive, aerospace and pharmaceuticals. The infrastructure of VGISC is based on an interconnected network of databases. Data interchanges are done using algorithms derived from mobile telephony technology and metadata synchronization system. VGSIC is also based on the Grid technology which basically is an Open Grid Service Architecture Data Access and Integration (OGSA-DAI) patterned on web services technology concepts. Database synchronization and archive integration features of VGSIC use an Open Archive Initiative (OAI) standard protocols.
VGISC software has been developed by the ECMWF, DWD, Météo France, the UK Met Office, EUMETSAT and other SIMDAT partners. The project is coordinated by the Fraunhofer Institute SCAI in Sankt Augustin, Germany. The Fraunhofer Institute for Algorithms and Scientific Computing engages in computer simulations for product and process development and is a strong partner in industry. SCAI designs and optimizes industrial applications and makes calculations on high-performance computers. Fraunhofer Gesellschaft undertakes applied research of direct use to private and public enterprise. The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) is an international, inter-governmental organization, supported by 28 European states. The objectives of the Centre include the provision of medium-range forecasts to the meteorological offices of its member states and cooperating states, maintaining a data archive, and providing assistance in advanced education and support to the World Meteorological Organization in implementing its programmes.
If PAG-ASA is able to gain access as well as contribute to an organized network of database such as the VGISC, it would be a great source of knowledge, research materials as well as real-time weather forecast information that can corroborate PAG-ASA’s operational forecasting and research needs.

(Sources and related links: http://www.simdat.eu; http://www.ecmwf.int; http://ercim-news.ercim.org/grid-technology-makes-weather-forecasts-without-boundaries-a-reality )