high-impact weather

Using co-production to improve the appropriate use of sub-seasonal forecasts in Africa

Having accurate sub-seasonal forecasts for Africa (2-4 weeks ahead) has huge potential to improve the early warning of extreme, high-impact weather events. Such warnings could support crucial preparedness action in weather-sensitive sectors such as agriculture, energy, food security and disaster risk reduction. However, realising this potential not only requires accurate forecasts, but forecasts that can … Continue Reading

Tanzania’s ‘forgotten’ cyclones and concerns for the future

Following the rare event of a tropical cyclone making landfall in Tanzania in April, African SWIFT and FCFA scientists unpacked new research recounting the devastating impacts of previous tropical cyclones from 1872 and 1952. Read the short excerpt below, or visit The Conversation to read the full story. A cyclone, known as Jobo, made landfall near Dar … Continue Reading

Intensive training equips forecasters to better predict Africa’s severe storms

By Dr Jennifer Fletcher for GCRF African SWIFT High-impact weather leads to devastating losses in tropical Africa each year. Precipitation forecasts from weather-prediction models remain very poor, and existing tools for very near-term prediction remain under-utilised. In September, African SWIFT is undertaking Testbed 3, an intensive two-week trialling of new approaches and tools to short-term, … Continue Reading

Is Tanzania ready for tropical cyclone Jobo?

By Hellen E. Msemo Declan L. Finney, Cathryn Birch and John Marsham for GCRF-African SWIFT The current development of the severe tropical storm over the South-Indian Ocean, later classed as severe tropical cyclone Jobo, reminds us of the other rare events where such high-impact storms have made landfall in Tanzania. In April of 1872 and … Continue Reading