The next-generation numerical forecasting model development project team, which is creating a Korean-style weather forecasting program, has undergone a new renovation after 10 months.
According to the Korea Meteorological Administration and academia on the 17th, the next-generation numerical forecasting model development project team held a board meeting in early this month and approved the appointment of Park Hoon as the new Director General.
The new Director General Park is an expert in the field of meteorology who has been active at the Korea Meteorological Administration for a long time. He has served as the head of the Gangwon Regional Office of Meteorology, head of the Daejeon Regional Office of Meteorology, and director of the National Meteorological Satellite Center, and he also held positions as the Director for Planning and Finance and the head of the Climate Policy Division at the Korea Meteorological Administration. His experience as the head of numerical model development has led to high evaluations for his understanding of the next-generation numerical forecasting model.
The numerical forecasting model is a simulation technology that predicts upcoming weather phenomena through mathematical calculations based on the physical laws of the Earth. Countries that have developed such models with independent technologies are few. Supercomputers run the numerical forecasting model to predict the weather.
With the appointment of the new Director General Park, the next-generation numerical forecasting model development project team has resolved a leadership vacancy after 10 months. The project team had been unable to select a new Director General since the departure of the first Director General, Lee Woo-jin, who completed his term in February of this year. There have been many criticisms regarding difficulties in handling various tasks of the project team due to the leadership vacancy.
As the new Director General, who is familiar with the work, has taken office, the next-generation numerical forecasting model project team is expected to get back on track. The Korea Meteorological Administration established the Korean-style numerical forecasting model development project team in 2011 to develop an independent numerical forecasting model unique to Korea. An investment of 78 billion won was made from 2011 to 2019, and the first-generation Korean-style numerical forecasting model was created in 2020. It became the ninth country in the world to possess an independent numerical forecasting model.
Subsequently, the Korea Meteorological Administration changed the name of the project team to the next-generation numerical forecasting model development project team and is currently developing the second-generation numerical forecasting model until 2026. The goal is to integrate the latest computational science technologies with the existing Korean-style numerical forecasting model and enhance the accuracy of predictions by adding weather satellite observation data.
The project's activity period was originally until 2026, but the Korea Meteorological Administration is working on transitioning it to a permanent organization. This is to ensure that the project team is not disbanded after completing the second-generation numerical forecasting model development project in 2026, allowing it to maintain its technical capabilities and personnel. There is also a strong possibility that the project team will continue to be responsible for the development of the third-generation numerical forecasting model that incorporates artificial intelligence (AI).