Efforts are currently underway to install a weather radar in the southernmost Addu City, Maldives Meteorological Service (MET) has revealed.
Speaking to PSM News' ‘Raajje Miadhu’ programme, Assistant Meteorologist Hussain Waheed said the work of installing a weather radar in Addu City was already underway, adding that the aim was to connect the entire country through a radar network by installing more radars across the country.
MET currently has one weather radar in its headquarters in the airport island, Hulhule’.
"We believe this will be a huge step forward for us. It will be a huge step forward for us in terms of issuing weather forecasts and alerts through these weather radars. What we are doing is very important for the development of the country and the lives of the people,” he explained.
Weather radar is the latest technology used in the monitoring of the weather in developed countries. The radar at Hulhule’ is used to track weather information in real-time occurring within a radius of about 250 km.
According to MET, the Doppler weather radar identifies information such as the area and intensity of rainfall, the direction and speed of the rain cloud along with other such crucial weather information including winds speeds.
The Doppler weather radar will provide weather forecasting and important information for air traffic safety and security, the National Meteorological Agency said.
MET is advancing its national weather monitoring capabilities with the establishment of a sixth meteorological observatory in Maafaru, Noonu Atoll, part of a four-year effort to modernise infrastructure and strengthen early warning systems.
Meteorological officials say the Maafaru facility will play a critical role in improving weather data collection across the northern region. The country's existing observatories are situated in Hulhulé in Kaafu Atoll, Hanimaadhoo in Haa Dhaalu Atoll, Kadhdhoo in Laamu Atoll, Kadedhdhoo in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll, and Gan in Addu City. The network also includes automated weather stations spread across 20 islands and tidal monitoring sites that track environmental patterns.