[O-03] Can you survive natural disasters by learning in school?

[O03-01] From Learning Meteorology in High-School Geosciences to Disaster Prevention and Mitigation

★Invited Papers

*Tetsuya Takemi¹ (1.Disaster Prevention Research Institute, Kyoto University)

Keywords:Meteorological disaster, Typhoon, Heavy rainfall, Linear-shaped precipitation area, Disaster prevention, Weather forecasting

Disasters from extreme weather such as heavy rainfalls/snowfalls and high winds occur somewhere in Japan every year. Mitigating damages from such extreme weather phenomena is an important societal issue. Disasters from heavy rainfalls/snowfalls and high winds occur during the activities of typhoons, Baiu fronts, and extratropical cyclones that repeatedly develop every year. In daily weather forecasting, we see weather charts of typhoons, Baiu fronts, and extratropical cyclones; we hear information about precipitation and winds; and we listen to alert information when extreme phenomena are anticipated. In spite of such weather forecasting and alert, the number of casualties from extreme weather phenomena is not zero. What is missing in meteorological disaster prevention? We face weather phenomena in our daily lives but do not understand underlying risks of the weather phenomena. In geosciences subjects at junior-high and high schools, students learn meteorology and should study its basics; but they do not understand meteorological risks. In this presentation, by choosing typhoons and cumulonimbus clouds as examples, I will talk about the processes that cause high winds and heavy rainfalls and how such extreme events affect local-scale phenomena in our neighborhood. I would discuss about how we understand underlying risks of extreme phenomena in our neighborhood and how we act as a preventive measure against anticipated disasters.