THE new Ground Receiving Station in Dumangas town, Iloilo province enhances weather forecasting. (Tara Yap)
ILOILO CITY – The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) recently inaugurated a new Ground Receiving Station in Iloilo province to enhance weather forecasting.
“This GRS plays an essential role in advancing our knowledge of extreme weather patterns and conditions in the country,” said DOST Undersecretary Leah Buendia during the inauguration in Dumangas town on Friday, March 10.
The Iloilo GRS is the third in the country and the first in the Visayas. It has a 3.5-meter Earth Observation satellite tracking antenna at the Climate Field School (CFS) established by the local government of Dumangas.
DOST-6 (Western Visayas) Director Rowen Gelonga said the Iloilo GRS is important for disaster-risk reduction (DRR) for short-term weather forecasting with data on torrential rainfall, thunderstorm, and lightning.
“This is to beef up our capability to handle disasters," Gelonga said.
A part of the Understanding Lightning and Thunderstorms for Extreme Weather Monitoring and Information Sharing (ULAT) project, the GRS is operated by the DOST Advanced Science and Technology Institute (ASTI) in cooperation with the Hokkaido University of Japan through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
An offshoot of the Iloilo GRS is the Knowledge Center for Weather, Atmospherical, Astronomical, and Geophysical Observations (KWAAGO) established by the Iloilo Science and Technology University Dumangas campus in Iloilo.
The KWAAGO will be an education hub for space, weather observation, and remote-sensing technologies.