Meteorology, Meteorological, History

An IGO
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weather and
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HISTORY OF EUMETSAT, p38.

HISTORY OF EUMETSAT, p36.

p37.

the much bigger debate about EUMETSAT taking over development and control of the whole ground segment.

The Long-Term Plan for both ground- and spacebased operations clearly sees EUMETSAT as assuming a powerful role in satellite meteorology and binding the discipline closely with its operational application in the National Meteorological Services. On hearing the plan, the Council expressed satisfaction with Morgan's and the Secretariat's preliminary work and, according to Mohr, the German delegation referred to it as "visionary". Morgan recalls that the French delegation called it a "comprehensive shopping list", each item to be decided on a case-by-case basis. The UK called the plan "forward-looking and ambitious", whilst the Italian delegate said that if EUMETSAT followed the activities outlined in the plan, its role would change from one of coordination to one more in line with operations.

Towards the end of the debate Germany's delegate called on the Council to provide more guidance to the Director in developing the long-term strategy into a detailed plan of action. As a result the Council established the Policy Advisory Committee (PAC). Over the years this sub-group of the Council has played a significant role, says Mohr, who for most of EUMETSAT's early life was a German delegate to the Council and for some years chaired the PAC. Certainly the Committee's records show more clearly than Council documents how some decisions originated.

The Committee's strength, argues Mohr, is that it provides a forum for delegates to explore solutions to difficult situations with less formality than in the full Council and with less likelihood of committing their governments prematurely to a position. Nevertheless, by talking in the PAC, the debates are minuted and thus more transparent than if held in the corridors. The intention is for the transparency to help reduce the friction and distrust that grow from secret discussions.

The Committee's first meeting was on 24 June 1987, and its first agenda item was the relationship between EUMETSAT and ESA. In the Long-Term Plan, Morgan had highlighted the main issue that lay between the two organisations when he wrote in the context of the Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) programme that "ESA has very different objectives from those of EUMETSAT which therefore must take a very active role in ensuring that the needs of its community are satisfied."

This theme, that the Agency and EUMETSAT have different obligations under the terms of their Conventions, is important and recurs throughout the history of EUMETSAT. The root of the difference is that EUMETSAT is an operational Organisation whereas the Agency's remit is research and development. In most Member States the National Meteorological Services fund EUMETSAT, whilst research and development ministries - mostly - bankroll ESA. The meteorological services would rather spend their money on proven, reliable technology, while the research and development ministries want to see their money spent on things that push the boundaries and would not otherwise receive funding. Difficulties can arise, therefore, when the two organisations are defining functional requirements. Each must satisfy its own constituency. There is an overlap that ties

SEE ALSO| |

1. Meteorologists shed political shackles, a review of Declan Murphy's history of the first 25 years of EUMETSAT (2011), by Helen Gavaghan.

2. An interview in 2010 with Dr Tillman Mohr, a special advisor to the secretary general of the World Meteorological Organisation, in Science, People & Politics.

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Contents

Preface

Foreword

Introduction

Ch.1

Ch.2

Ch.3

Ch.4

Ch.5

Ch.6

Ch.7

Ch.8

The History of EUMETSAT is available in English and French from EUMETSAT©.
First printed 2001. ISBN 92-9110-040-4

Eumetsat meteorology meteorological artificial satellites
European Space Agency weather climate policy politics history