The 2021 annual symposium of the MISSPAD project, Multi-model-Integrated Subseasonal-to-Seasonal Prediction, and Application in Disaster Risk Reduction, has been held in the National Astronomical Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qiannan, Guizhou Province, 28-29 July 2021. This symposium is funded by the Alliance of International Science Organizations (ANSO). As the largest surface area telescope on the planet, FAST (Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope, also known as China Skyeye) is located right here, which represents the new frontier in the evolution of the telescope and is the most sophisticated radio telescope known to man, helping humans capture more messages from the universe. ANSO-MISSPAD 2021 Annual Symposium was hosted by the Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and cosponsored by Beijing Normal University (BNU) and the Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences (CAMS). Due to the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, this conference is a combination of online and offline.

The countries along the Belt and Road (B&R) are prone to meteorological disasters due to their unique geographical location. Timely and accurate prediction of extreme meteorological hazards is an important way to carry out scientific disaster prevention, which is crucial for ensuring the safety of the public and property, protecting the ecological environment, and promoting socio-economic stability and development in B&R countries. In order to better serve the disaster prevention, mitigation, and sustainable development along the Belt and Road, this conference invited more than 60 experts and scholars from home and abroad to exchange researches and provide scientific guidance and support for the implementation of the ANSO-MISSPAD project. As the guiding experts, Academician Guoxiong Wu from IAP of CAS, Academician Deliang Chen from the Gothenburg University of Sweden, Prof. Likun AI - the assistant executive director of ANSO Secretariat, and Prof. Chaolin Zhang - the deputy director of Department of Earth Sciences, NSFC, were specially invited to attend the conference. 

The symposium was chaired by Prof. Hongli Ren from the CAMS, Prof. Jing Yang from BNU, and Prof. Jun Jian from Dalian Maritime University. At the beginning of the conference, Prof. AI delivered a speech on behalf of the ANSO Secretariat, briefly introduced the basic information of the ANSO Secretariat and the scientific activities supported by ANSO. Prof. Qing Bao, the Co-Principal Investigator of the ANSO-MISSPAD project, reported the progress of the project from 2020 to 2021 in four aspects: Subseasonal-to-Seasonal (S2S) prediction system and data center, participation in international programs, application of S2S in B&R regions, and talent education and seminars organization. The symposium also had reports by Chalump Oonariya from the Climate Center of Thailand Meteorology Department, Porpattama Hammachukiattikul from Phuket Rajabhat University, Prof. Weiqiang Wang from CSL-CER, Prof. Hongli Ren from CAMS, Yi Wang from the World Meteorological Center (Beijing) of CMA, Prof. Xuguang Sun from Nanjing University, Haipeng Yu from the NIEER of CAS, Prof. Ho Chin Siang from UTM, Dr. Indira Kadel from Nepal, and Dr. Erkin K. Isaev from UCA. Finally, academicians Guoxiong WU from IAP and Deliang Chen from the Gothenburg University of Sweden, the scientific guidance consultants of the ANSO-MISSPAD project, gave guidance and suggestions on these topics.
 

Online Participants of 2021 ANSO-MISSPAD Annual Symposium

The symposium summarized the latest achievements, in the form of reports, posters, and free discussion made by the participants in the field of scientific research and application services. The participating experts had in-depth exchanges and discussions on the three themes: climate variability and prediction in the B&R Region, new techniques for improving climate models and prediction in the B&R Region, and 2020-2021 Season summary of climate prediction for the B&R Region. The experts also made plans for the next step of the project.