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Today, many ordinary people stigmatise forecasters and say they are the chief liars. But few have any idea how difficult it is to collect climate data and predict changes. After all, most climate events take hours to originate.
Weather observations are very important. There are no people or sectors of the economy that are not weather-independent. And to make specialists’ conclusions about weather phenomena more accurate, it is worth engaging the public. There are 11,000 meteorological volunteers in America. These are ordinary citizens who see how much the climate affects their country’s landscape. They have volunteered themselves to monitor the weather and help the national weather service. And we do not even have a dialogue with volunteers about possible assistance to the weather service, there is no legislative practice of interaction with volunteers.
Meanwhile, in a huge country like ours, the help of meteorologists is very much needed. People, especially in remote areas, could, if they noticed a dangerous phenomenon — floods, for example, or avalanches — quickly share information and help prevent dire consequences. But we do not have a national system for aggregating climate data from a concerned public. And this is a powerful force.
Cover photo: Begas / iStock
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