HKO launches new global weather information portal

10 December 2015

How are the weather and sea conditions over the South China Sea now? Has there been any earthquake in Vanuatu lately? What is the temperature in Antarctica today? Members of the public may now find the answers to all the above questions from the "Met on Map", a new web portal (maps.weather.gov.hk/gis-portal/web/) launched by the Hong Kong Observatory today (December 10).

The "Met on Map" provides integrated global weather and geophysical information on a Geographic Information System (GIS) platform for access by the public according to their own needs. It allows users to overlay different types of weather information, such as temperature, wind speed and direction, radar and satellite images, on the detailed maps through the web browsers on computers, smartphones or tablets conveniently.

Besides weather observations, weather forecasts for different locations in Hong Kong, marine forecasts for neighbouring sea areas as well as global earthquake reports can also be displayed on the map. The Head of International and Relief Service at the Hong Kong Red Cross, Ms Betty Lau, was impressed by the new service. She said, "As more and more people travel around the world for work and leisure, the need for global weather information has been increasing. The Observatory's "Met on Map" is not only handy to travellers, but also very helpful for the relief operations of the Red Cross. Having obtained the knowledge in overseas weather situation and other critical information, such as the location of earthquake epicentre and magnitude, the Red Cross can more effectively allocate its resources and provide timely support services to the people in need."

Going forward, the "Met on Map" web portal will be enhanced with other weather and geophysical information, such as satellite images covering the whole globe, tropical cyclone tracks and weather maps.