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Objectives
(Graeme Ball)
On behalf of the executive of
the Ship Observations Team, I would like to welcome the Port
Meteorological Officers of the world and many national VOS Program
managers to this, the third International Port Meteorological Officer
Conference. This
meeting follows three days of meetings dedicated to harmonising the
surface marine program, in particular the VOS, in Europe under EUCOS. The
SOT has the same goal but on the global stage. Port Meteorological
Officers play a fundamental and very essential role in the programs
coordinated under SOT, so therefore harmonising the way in which PMOs
operate is crucial to achieving the aims of SOT. I
would like take this opportunity to thank Deutsche Wetterdienst for
hosting this meeting, and in particular Mr. Klaus-Jurgen Schreiber, Chief
of Division, Observing Networks, for his opening remarks, and a special
thank you to Mr. Volker Wiedner for the local organisation and facilities
provided for this, and indeed the 3 meetings this week. Thank
you to Mr. Edgard Cabrera, Chief Ocean Affairs Division, for his welcome
on behalf of WMO. I also wish to publicly thank WMO for supporting this
meeting, and for providing the financial assistance to enable the
attendance of some delegates. A
special vote of thanks must also go to my fellow SOT members who will
assist me with the presentations over these two days. For
this meeting to be truly effective it must be interactive - you must
participate by asking questions either during the designated question
times or in private discussion with the presenters. This conference is for
your benefit so please make the most of the opportunity. In closing, I'd again welcome everybody to Hamburg for PMO-III and I trust that this conference is successful in achieving its many objectives. |
