Ahead of the International Day of Ozone Layer Protection on September 16, the Ozone Layer Protection Program of the Ministry of Environment organized a solemn event, within the framework of which the Executive Secretary of the Ozone Secretariat, Seki Nakamura, was in Armenia for the first time.
As part of the events organized on the occasion of the environmental day, Seki Nakamura, the executive secretary of the Ozone Secretariat, accompanied by Deputy Minister Tigran Gabrielyan, Director of the “Hydrometeorology and Monitoring Center” SNCO Levon Azizyan, Deputy Directors Gagik Surenyan and Gayane Shahnazaryan, National Coordinator for Ozone Layer Issues Liana Ghahramanyan, visited the Amberd high mountain meteorological station of Armhydromet.
The station was founded on June 27, 1933. The meteorological station is located in the Aragatsotn marz, on the southern slope of the Aragats mountain, at an altitude of 2071 meters above sea level.
The representatives of "Hydrometeorology and Monitoring Center" SNCO presented the activities of the station to the guests.
Observations are carried out in accordance with the procedure established by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and international standards. Observations are made every 3 hours on the following meteorological parameters: the amount of cloud cover in the general and lower floors, seasonal, maximum, minimum air temperatures, seasonal, maximum, minimum soil temperatures, wind direction, average and maximum (gust) speed, air humidity, observations on the amount of precipitation, atmospheric pressure, atmospheric phenomena, as well as observations of the duration of sunshine are carried out every hour. Based on the received meteorological parameters, the values of relative air humidity, dew point, saturation deficit and water vapor elasticity are calculated using the psychrometric table.
Total ozone monitoring results from the Amberd weather station are sent to the World Ozone and Ultraviolet Radiation Data Center (WOUDC – Toronto, Canada) once a month under a contract with DWD.
Since 2008, a regional monitoring station of the first level of cross-border atmospheric air pollution has been operating in the area of the Amberd high-altitude station. At the monitoring station, daily observations of atmospheric air quality and the composition of atmospheric precipitation are carried out, the annual data of which is submitted to the chemical coordination center of the convention "Transboundary air pollution over large areas" operating under the Norwegian Air Research Institute. Based on monitoring and emission data, the Norwegian Meteorological Institute conducts transboundary air pollution modeling and prepares an annual report on transboundary air pollution for Armenia.