SAUDI ARABIA

Meteorologists oppose PME move to encrypt radars

February 19, 2018

Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH
– Several experts in meteorology, including university professors and weather enthusiasts have criticized the Presidency for Meteorology and Environment Protection (PME) for encrypting its radars and attacking them without any genuine reason.

The PME has justified its decision to encrypt radars, saying it was to regulate the use of radar services, and prevent access to unauthorized users. Weather enthusiasts who are not satisfied with PME’s clarification have launched a Twitter campaign against the organization’s action.

Dr. Abdullah Al-Musnad, a professor in meteorology at Qassim University, criticized PME by saying: "The blogosphere published by amateur fans is useful and reliable."

He added: “When I asked PME weather data from all its 27 stations, being a specialist in the field, they refused to accept the request saying I should ask for data from a few stations not all.”

Al-Musnad asked six questions: “How can we make research without information? How can we write? How can we analyze? How can we study? How can we serve the nation? Can we take data from a foreign agency and say PME refused to provide it and said the data was for sale?”

He said encryption of the Doppler radar page to prevent access to the public, especially experts and those interested in the field is not a right approach.

The professor urged the presidency to deal with a large area of ​the Kingdom ​(2 million km) and establish two or three administrative offices in each region to monitor weather changes and inform the public.

He also proposed a meeting between PME officials with Saudi meteorologists and specialists to listen to them and take their opinions and observations into account.

Prof. Ali Al-Harbi of the Faculty of Meteorology and Environment at Jeddah's King Abdulaziz University also opposed encrypting of PME’s radars and said it would prevent the public from getting access to weather information including torrential floods and thunderstorms.

Barq Al-Shimal emphasized the need for providing city names instead of codes in English while providing weather information. It was amateurs who gave names of cities, townships and roads within the radar 9 years ago, he pointed out.

Fahd Al-Ajlan, a weather expert, said PME’s encoding of its radars was an attempt to marginalize the role of amateurs.

Hussein Al-Qahtani, spokesman of the presidency, said his organization decided to encode its radars from mid-November 2017 to reorganize its radar services.

“We have decided to provide the service to registered customers,” Al-Qahtani told Al-Watan Arabic daily. Since November 2017 more than 400 individuals and institutions have registered with the presidency, he pointed out.

Al-Qahtani stressed that the presidency aims to make optimum use of its services. “The radar service is now available for those who have registered on our website,” he added.

The PME has vowed to pursue weather enthusiasts and climate forecasters on social media networks by introducing a new system to regulate the work of meteorology in Saudi Arabia.

“We’ll punish unauthorized agencies that provide weather forecasting services,” Al-Qahtani said, adding that the measure was taken to save the public from false information and avoid confusion.

PME accused weather enthusiasts who make forecasts through social media platforms of seeking media publicity. “The wrong information they pass will have negative social, economic and psychological repercussions,” Al-Qahtani explained.


February 19, 2018
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