At 3:00 a.m., the sky in Yanqing was still dark, and the 11 members of the Winter Olympic Yanqing Meteorological Forecast Service Team were ready to go to their respective jobs.
Every day at 5:00 a.m., the first weather forecast of the day has been issued and delivered to the event side and the coaches, athletes and staff of various countries on time.
Since January 25, the Winter Olympic Forecast Service team in Yanqing has produced and released hour-by-hour forecast products. The forecast team of 11 people is divided into three groups: 2 people in the alpine ski resort and 2 people in the bobsleigh venue to carry out on-site forecast interpretation and service; 7 people in the Yanqing Meteorological Service Sub-Center of the Winter Olympics provide all the forecast information and make every effort to support the forecast.
Yu Bo, deputy director of the Municipal Meteorological Observatory, is responsible for the forecasting of the event venues at the Yanqing Meteorological Service Sub-Center. She told reporters that for the alpine skiing and bobsleigh events carried out in yanqing, the forecast team will provide hour-by-hour weather forecasting services for venues at different altitudes of alpine skiing and bobsleigh venues. Forecast elements include not only conventional sky conditions, temperatures, etc., but more importantly, key factors that affect the event, such as gusts of wind, low visibility, precipitation phase, etc.
"Alpine skiing events are particularly sensitive to high winds, we also need to focus on the impact threshold in the forecast, if the wind speed exceeds a certain threshold, the game may have to be suspended or postponed, then the consideration of this threshold is very important, the threshold is accurate, in order to provide a more valuable reference for the event side." Yu Bo said that grasping the threshold, in turn, requires forecasters to look for a "window period" that does not exceed the threshold of impact.
The early entry into the "Winter Olympics Time" on January 25 is also to allow team members to adapt to the work rhythm during the event in advance and check the work flow. "Every day in the early morning to start work, continue until 6 pm, wait for the opening of the Winter Olympics, you have to insist until the end of all the events of the day, the work intensity is larger, so you must adapt in advance." Yu Bo said.
Since 2017, the 11-person Yanqing meteorological forecast service team has been formed. Every winter in the past 5 years, they have been stationed in Yanqing Division to conduct winter training and field forecasting training. They climbed mountains and slid through snow in order to experience and grasp the changes in mountain meteorological elements and make accurate forecasts.
"After 5 years of trial and error, now the final test of us is coming!" Yu Bo said that everyone's mood is both excited and nervous, and every team member hopes to use the results and experience accumulated in the past 5 years to the service of the Beijing Winter Olympics as soon as possible, and maximize their strength, "There is pressure, but more motivation!" ”