Chinese, US institutions collaborate on extreme weather forecasting

QINGDAO -- A Chinese research institution has teamed up with US partners to establish the International Laboratory for High-Resolution Earth System Prediction, which is expected to make early forecasts on extreme weather.

The Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, based in east China's Shandong province, confirmed on Monday that it has collaborated with the US National Center for Atmosphere Research and Texas A&M University in setting up the lab.

The lab is set to develop an advanced earth system modeling framework capable of providing reliable information at both the global and regional scale.

Wu Lixin, head of the Qingdao national lab and a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said climate variations have aggravated the intensity of extreme weather, including tropical cyclones, heat waves, winter storms, floods and rising coastal sea levels, incurring heavy casualties and economic losses.

He said with the advance in super-computing and earth system modeling technology, Chinese and American scientists will improve their precision in predicting extreme weather.

The lab, which has offices at both of the Chinese and U.S. institutions, has collaborative objectives for the next five years.

Wu said open science and collaborative innovation have become important for international science and technology development.

He said he hoped the research center can also help bring together international professionals and resources for doing innovative research.