TOKYO: The Japan Meteorological Agency said Tuesday that it will carry out intensive observations to improve the accuracy of forecasting a so-called linear precipitation zone, a band of cumulonimbus clouds that causes heavy rain.

The observations will be carried out through October mainly in the Kyushu southwestern region and the East China Sea, in cooperation with a total of 14 universities and research institutions, including the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience and Nagasaki University.

The agency plans to observe, including from ships, the inflow of water vapor from the East China Sea to Kyushu while using onshore radars and other equipment to elucidate the internal structure of a linear precipitation zone and how it transforms over time.

From Wednesday, the agency will forecast the occurrence of a linear precipitation zone and announce forecasts half a day in advance.

The accuracy of such forecasts will likely be low for the time being, according to the agency. “What we want to do first is to warn people of the possible danger,” said agency official Tamaki Yasuda, adding, “We’ll improve the accuracy in stages.”

As part of efforts to improve a numerical weather prediction model, the agency also plans to run simulations on a continuous basis using the Fugaku supercomputer, owned by government-backed research institute Riken, and compare the results with those calculated by a supercomputer that is currently used by the agency for forecasts.

JIJI Press