Philippine weather bureau working on SMS forecast

21.07.2006
Local weather bureau Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Atmospheric Services Administration (PAGASA) is currently working on a system that will enable the bureau to disseminate on-demand weather forecasts through short messaging service (SMS).

According to PAGASA director Dr. Prisco Nilo, what the bureau has right now is an SMS-alert system that sends typhoon alerts to governors, city mayors, and other key local government unit heads.

Called 'Text a Weather', the new PAGASA project will allow users SMS access to weather forecasts or typhoon signals in any area in the country by keying in the area's zip code.