BOJNOURD, Khorasan Prov. - Iran's Meteorological Organization ranks fourth after India, China and Japan among 37 Asian countries in terms of equipment and skilled manpower. The organization's chief, Mohammad Ali Nourian, said Monday that at present 13 kinds of meteorological networks are feeding the central headquarters with data from 2,000 spots countrywide. The organization also monitors visual information from Russian, American, European, Chinese and Japanese satellite stations, he said.

An automatic switching center transmits data it receives from a quarter of the earth's surface every day, he said. Additionally, two floating aparatuses in the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman collect marine information via highly sensitive equipment, assess the information and transmit it to the coast. According to the organization's plans, the government is to set up 616 meteorological stations countrywide by the end of the Third Five-Year Development Plan, he said adding, two third of the stations have been completed so far.

Nourian pointed out that the first stage of the meteorological radar network is being installed within the framework of a seven million dollar contract with the World Meteorological Organization. The system will help measure weather information including the humidity, amount of rain and hail deposits within a distance of 250-400 km. By issuing notices and warnings 24-72 hours before occurrence of floods, hails and storms, the organization has helped to reduce destructive impacts of such natural phenomena by 40 percent.

(IRNA)