JIANG Xingwei, Director of the Marine Environment Forecast Center, a part of the State Oceanography Bureau, said recently that China has established a comprehensive all-weather marine disaster monitoring system. The system is able to make accurate forecasts, in an attempt to reduce possible losses caused by disasters to the minimum.

China uses diversified means to monitor marine disasters, including shoreline, floating buoy, and ship based all-weather watch, marine weather and hydrological data sharing and exchanges with international communities on a regular basis, and marine satellite based observation. During typhoon Yuna?痵 attacks to the East China Sea from 0800 of August 11 to 2000 of August 13, 2004, the No. 9 marine observation buoy deployed by the State Oceanography Bureau recorded wave and weather data in the entire course accurately and completely. The buoy also observed a maximum wave height of 13.2 meters, providing valuable data for marine disaster warning and forecasting activities.

China has so far established a marine disaster pre-warning mechanism, and an emergency responding system for marine disaster prevention and preparedness with a tsunami warning function. At 1600, September 14, 2004, the National Marine Forecast Center and the Tianjin Marine Environment Monitoring and Forecasting Center jointly issued a timely storm surge and large wave warning. Upon the warning, the Tianjin municipal government immediately embarked on disaster prevention and preparedness through its emergency responding system, and reduced the possible losses to the minimum.

Chinese marine scientists are currently working on numerical forecast models for both deep and shallow waters, a limited area numerical forecast model for sea surface wind fields, and a numerical forecast model for typhoon wind fields, in a move to realize operational wave numerical forecasts for China?痵 shoreline areas and adjacent offshore areas. In the meantime, Chinese scientists are developing other application models, including a high resolution coupled numerical forecast model for storm surges and offshore tidal waves, a numerical forecast model for typical invading storm surges, and regional and global numerical forecast models for El Nino.