5G mobile networks could spoil weather forecasts | Technology

A new mobile network deployed around the world could affect the ability of meteorologists to predict major storms.

The 5G network could disrupt the satellite instruments used to detect water vapor, they warned, possibly leading to erroneous weather forecasts, worse storm warnings and loss of life.

US experts have already reported problems, after the country sold the rights on frequencies close to 23.8 gigahertz, the same frequency used to detect water vapor.

Neils Bormann, from the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting in Reading, told The Observer that the way in which 5G is deployed "would compromise our ability to make accurate weather forecasts."

"These data are essential to our forecasting ability. They are a unique natural resource, and if we lose that capacity, the weather forecast will get worse. "

When the water vapor is measured at 23.8 gigahertz, it helps determine the development of a storm. If the 5G transmits on a similar frequency, resembling the vapor in the atmosphere, the data is redundant.

In the United States, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) earned nearly $ 2 billion, selling 24.25 to 24.45 GHz and 24.75 to 25.25 GHz in April of this year.

NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) research organization have already asked a part of the government to protect the frequencies used for Earth observations, Nature reports.

But the country could start auctioning the devices used to measure precipitation, sea ice and clouds in December.

Regulators around the world are meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, on October 28 to decide what frequencies will be used and the level of interference with forecasters allowed.

The 36 – 37 GHz range is used to detect rain and snow, while 50 GHz is used to determine atmospheric temperature and 86 – 92 GHz to detect cloud cover and ice.

The old 4G network is broadcast on 700 megahertz, 1700-2100 megahertz or 1900 megahertz.

Cyclone Fani killed 12 people and wounded 160 others when he crashed yesterday on the east coast of India with winds of 155 km / h, local media reported. It is one of the biggest to hit India for several years.

It is not clear if the 5G could compromise our ability to detect the major storm.