Four Chinese weather stations added to WMO centennial sites list

Four Chinese meteorological stations with more than a century of continuous observation history have been added to the World Meteorological Organization's list of Centennial Observing Stations, bringing China's total number of recognized centennial stations to 22.

The recognition was included on the agenda of the 80th session of the WMO Executive Council, held in Geneva, Switzerland, from June 22 to 26.

The newly recognized stations are located in Guiyang in Southwest China's Guizhou province, Tanggu in the northern municipality of Tianjin, Tengchong in Southwest China's Yunnan province and Yueyang in Central China's Hunan province.

All four stations have maintained uninterrupted meteorological observations for more than 100 years. Observations at Tanggu and Yueyang began in 1909, while Tengchong started operations in 1911 and Guiyang in 1920.

Over decades of continuous monitoring, the stations have accumulated long-term and stable meteorological records valuable for studying regional climate change, as well as tracking extreme weather events.

The WMO established the recognition program in 2016 to highlight the importance of long-term observation sites and acknowledge the efforts of member countries in maintaining them.

The initiative aims to strengthen the protection of historic observing stations and promote the development of stable and high-quality Earth system observation records.

A total of 88 new stations worldwide were recommended for recognition this year. Before the latest additions, 474 stations from 74 countries and territories had received the designation.

China Meteorological Administration said it will continue to strengthen station infrastructure, operational maintenance and the preservation of historical data, while improving observation quality to support climate change research and disaster prevention.