Manual on WIS and Guide to WIS

WIS Official Documents Timeline (Powerpoint, English only)

Recommended draft of Tech Reg 49, Vol I, Sec A3 (version 1.0)

English Arabic Spanish French Russian Chinese

WMO No.1060 The Manual on the WMO Information System - 2012

Arabic - Chinese -English - French - Spanish - Russian

WMO No.1061 The Guide to the WMO Information System - 2013

English -other languages as they come on line

Development pages

For official sanctioning of WIS within the formal structure of WMO, it is necessary to update Technical Regulations, WMO Publication Number 49.

WMO No. 49 is presented in four volumes:
  Volume I – General meteorological standards and recommended practices
  Volume II – Meteorological service for international air navigation
  Volume III – Hydrology
  Volume IV – Quality Management

Within the General Meteorological Standards and Recommended Practices (WMO No. 49, Volume I), Section A concerns the World Weather Watch programme of WMO. WMO No. 49, Vol. I, Section A has three sub-sections:
  A.1 Global Observing System (GOS)
  A.2 Global Data Processing System (GDPS)
  A.3 Global Telecommunication System (GTS)
Note - from 2012 reference is Tech Reg 49, Volume 1, Part 1, Section 3 - WMO Information System. GTS is under section 3.3 - organization

Not directly relevant here, it can be noted that WMO No. 49, Volume I contains a Section B, General Standards and Recommended Practices. This has subsections on Climatology, Global Atmospheric Watch (GAW), Meteorological bibliography and publications, Education and training, and Meteorological research. Also, WMO No. 49, Volume I, Section C is entitled Meteorological Services and contains subsections on Marine, Agriculture, Air Navigation, and Hydrology.

To institute the WMO Information System, Section A.3 will be edited and is available as a wiki page.

The four volumes of the WMO Basic Document Series are supplemented by Annexes called Manuals, which have the same status as the Basic Documents. The Manual on the GTS, WMO No. 386 is an example of such an Annex, referenced in WMO No. 49, Vol. I, Section A.3. The edited Section A.3 will reference a new Manual on WIS. Link to Manual on WIS wiki page.

The Manual on WIS (WMO-No. 1060) will be a skeleton document, with some sections completed but others just placeholders. Parts that will be completed immediately are primarily concerned with WIS Part B, which addresses new functions beyond the current GTS. The Manual on WIS will complement the current Manual on GTS (WMO NO. 386). Eventually, the Manual on WIS will update and integrate most of the current Manual on GTS and will harmonize with the official documentation of related programmes. The reorganization of technical documents also depends on institution of new programmes, particularly the proposed WMO Integrated Global Observing System (WIGOS).

In addition to the Manuals, there is a class of WMO documentation, not part of the technical regulations, usually called Guides (e.g. the Guide on the World Weather Watch Data Management, WMO-No. 788). The purpose of Guides is to provide practical information on the development, organization, implementation and operation of the system, subsystem or service in order to enhance both the participation of individual Members in the activity and the benefits they may obtain from it. Guides often supplement regulatory material contained in Technical Regulations and their annexes. The Guide to WIS will be such a document.

The Guide to WIS (WMO-No. 1061) will be published in an incremental manner over time. Parts being completed immediately are primarily concerned with those new practices, procedures and specifications of WIS not encompassed within the predecessor GTS. Link to Guide to WIS wiki page

For approval at the Extra-Ordinary Session of CBS in November 2010, the recommended draft version 1.0 of the proposed amendment to the Technical Regulations (WMO-No. 49), Volume I, Section A.3, the initial Manual on WIS, and the initial Guide to WIS were made by the Implementation Coordination Team on Information Systems and Services (ICT-ISS) in September 2010 and the Inter-Commission Coordination Group on WIS (ICG-WIS) on October 1, 2010. The proposed amendment to WMO-No. 49, Vol. I, Section A.3 and the initial Manual on WIS are to be submitted for approval at WMO Congress XVI in May 2011.

Links (Must log in to see some components)

1. WMO 49, Sec A3 wiki page
2. Link to Manual on WIS wiki page
3. Link to Guide to WIS wiki page
4. Writing Guide for Tech Regs
5. Developers discussion forum
6. WIS Technical Regulations Development Pages
7. Manual on GTS Development Pages