Xu Xiaofeng, Vice-Administrator of China Meteorological Administration, said on April 7th that China will make climate forecast for whole Asia this summer using our own climate forecast model for the first time.

　　It was said by Mr. Xu Xiaofeng at the First Session of the Forum on Regional Climate Monitoring, Assessment and Prediction for Asia. He also said that China is striving for one of the Regional Climate Center of Asia. Chinese climate researchers are no longer focusing only on China at present, they have already enlarged their angle of view to the whole Asia region.

　　Luo Yong, Vice-Director of National Climate Center, China Meteorological Administration, said that National Climate Center has been making service on domestic climate research and forecast since its foundation in 1995. With development in the past ten years, National Climate Center kept on improving its operational level, and has incipiently had the ability to make service for other countries in Asia. At present, with the step of China from great nation to powerful nation and the trend of internationalization on short-term climate forecast, China is applying to be one of the Asia Regional Climate Center of WMO.

　　It is reported that WMO will accept application from any country at any time in the next four years. The second regional association of WMO is concretely in charge of evaluating Asia regional climate center. Six countries have submitted their application up to now, including China, Japan, Korea, Russia and Iran, among which China, Japan and Korea are more powerful.

　　Luo Yong said that Beijing Climate Centre was officially established on March 31st, 2003 and is responsible for establishing regional climate center planed by WMO. Beijing Climate Centre is subordinate to China Meteorological Administration. It improved the ability in climate operation and research service to meet the need of functions of regional climate center set by WMO, especially expanded the monitoring and forecast region of climate elements from China to Asia, and up to the whole world. It would also expand its climate operation and service tradition from temporal scales of month, season and year to climate change forecast and service with decade and century scales.

　　The forum was initiated and organized by Beijing Climate Centre, China Meteorological Administration to make known by the world that Beijing Climate Centre has had the ability to forecast regional climate of the whole Asia. It is striving for farther improving of climate forest level so as to become the first admitted regional climate center.

Translated by Zhou Wei
Reviewed by Luo Jibin