Rain season
has started in Mexico City , and having a real-time monitoring device for precipitations is very important. The National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) has placed 47 rain measurement stations at strategic places in the city to obtain data that help to prevent disasters.
This has been made possible thanks to the Hydrological Observatory (OH) , handled by specialists from the Institute of Engineering (II) , supported by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation of Mexico City.
More than a year has passed since its creation, and this system will soon have 55 stations in the capital, seeking to replicate the model in other states of the country, said Dr. Adrián Pedrozo Acuña , in charge of the observatory.
According to UNAM Global , this project has an essential purpose: To publicize the places where it rains and the amount of rainfall, and in this way, prevent disasters, keep citizens safe, and provide the authorities with tools for decision making
Once the effectiveness of the OH has been proven, UNAM experts must put all their efforts into setting an intelligent water system, not only to measure rainfall, but also water levels in rivers that still flow naturally, such as the San Buenaventura and Magdalena rivers.
Furthermore, they are interested in working with information from the hydrometeorological radar of the Navigation Services in the Mexican Air Space (SENEAM) , which is used to monitor storms that hinder the landing of aircrafts.
“What we want is to correct the reports of that radar so that people have quantitive data,” said the specialist of the II.
In this context, another project that will complement the OH function is that of hydrological processes in urban areas , led by Dr. Agustín Breña Naranjo , which will measure the flow of rivers and the quality of water.
Pedrozo Acuña stressed that the OH is a unique project worldwide since there is no other urban area that has a real-time rain measurement network of this quality.
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