The goal of this project is to analyze the effect of lower Aircraft Meteorological Data Relay (AMDAR) observations on the weather forecasts (specifically precipitation forecasts) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background

Flood and drought forecasts rely on the hydrometeorological forecasts provided by ECMWF, NOAA, and other agencies. Generally, these forecasts assimilate the AMDAR observations in their modeling system to improve their forecast skill. During the COVID-19 pandemic, these forecasts have been affected by lower data flow from AMDAR data.

Project Goals

• Analyze aircraft mobility data globally and AMDAR data flow before and during the pandemic
• Identify regions where weather forecasts have been impacted the most during pandemic due to lack of AMDAR data
• Understanding of the weather forecast skill during the pandemic and compare the forecast skills before and during a pandemic.

Useful References

https://journals.ametsoc.org/view/journals/bams/97/4/bams-d-14-00055.1.xml

https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2020GL090699

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00924-6

https://www.airlines.org/dataset/impact-of-covid19-data-updates/

https://www.ecmwf.int/en/about/media-centre/news/2020/drop-aircraft-observations-could-have-impact-weather-forecasts

https://public.wmo.int/en/media/press-release/wmo-and-iata-agree-improve-aircraft-meteorological-reporting