Students learn about global warming

The World Meteorology Day 2009 is observed every year by the World Meteorology Organization (WMO) and the meteorology community worldwide on March 23, and the trend was continued this year, too. Like always, the organisation celebrated the day by educating the young generation on a particular theme. This year, the theme was ‘Weather, Climate and the Air we breathe’.

On the occasion, the meteorology department of Ahmedabad organised a ‘Know your climate and weather report’ exhibition for school students, and made them aware about the hazards facing the environment and measures that can be taken to ensure a better living. Around 250 students participated in the event and gained knowledge about factors that have been aggravating ‘global warming’, its solutions and the different kind of instruments used for recording weather conditions.

Director, met department, Kamaljit Ray said, “We invited students from schools across Ahmedabad and educated them about the various problems engulfing our environment. We also arranged for a live presentation providing detailed information about how climate, temperature, wind direction, rainfall, humidity and similar other environmental conditions are recorded everyday.”

Kamaljit also said that the weather department is like a science lab that provides people with the opportunity to learn about their environment. “Now, after attending the exhibit, the children will be able to understand the importance of the air we breathe,” she said.

According to the research conducted by WMO, temperature in most of the cities is recorded as 0.5 - 0.6 degree Celsius warmer than its surrounding suburban and rural areas. Reasons have been attributed to the wide use of air conditioner, air pollution by vehicles, excessive use of electricity and rapidly diminishing greenery.

Dinesh Vaswani, a student of standard IX, said, “Participating in the exhibit was a learning experience. I was surprised by the kind of instruments used for measuring weather conditions, especially the ‘Hair Hygrograph’ machine which uses horse tail hair to measure humidity.”

Participating students were also shown a movie on the changing climate and effect on the world. Priya Makehja, a student of Airport School, said, “It was after a visit to the meteorology department that I learnt about the importance of climate and the measures we can do to save it from further damage. For instance, one should use cycles to commute and check pollution and should switch off lights when not in use. It has given me a whole new perspective to our environment.”