TAHMO

The Trans-African Hydro-Meteorological Observatory, also known as TAHMO, aims to build a large network of weather stations across Africa. Current and historic weather data matters for agriculture, climate monitoring, and many hydro-meteorological applications.

TAHMO is committed to serving the public by advancing free and open exchange of hydro-meteorological data collected with its monitoring stations. It allows free download of raw TAHMO data for scientific research and governmental applications. This approach supports World Meteorological Organization Resolution 40 and Resolution 25. Commercial applications are considered case by case.

meteoblue began supplying weather forecasts in 2021 because of its ability to produce high accuracy forecasts in tropical climates.

Customer success story

How to build a network of weather stations in Africa and deliver the data to the local farmers

Africa is home to more than 1.2 billion people. Hundreds of millions have limited access to clean water. Population growth, socio-economic vulnerability, limited infrastructure, and climate change are projected to increase this number further. The challenge is intensified by the lack of a reliable and dense weather station network, since anticipating future water levels requires weather monitoring.

Africa also holds a large share of the world’s undeveloped arable land and much of its food production comes from small farmers. Many farmers face increasing uncertainty. Traditional weather sayings become less useful as climate patterns shift and scientific data is often unavailable.

TAHMO addresses this gap. It is a non-profit organisation based in Kenya and aims to build a dense hydro-meteorological station network in sub-Saharan Africa. The target density is roughly one station every 30 km.

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Current weather infrastructure in Africa

Hydro-meteorological monitoring and data distribution across Africa is limited. Observation networks are sparse and funding for national institutions is often insufficient. Communication gaps between countries and regions create additional data gaps.

Many existing stations are concentrated in northern and southern Africa, leaving large parts of central Africa with limited coverage. Historical data availability is another challenge since much older data was recorded on paper and not digitised.

TAHMO’s solution

TAHMO developed solutions across four areas. The station design, placement, distribution and maintenance, and data dissemination.

Stations

TAHMO required stations that are affordable, reliable, and durable. Since suitable stations were not available on the market, stations were developed for this purpose. Sensor design competitions were held in 2013 and 2014, which supported improvements and helped incorporate additional sensors, including a lightning sensor.

The MEM station by Meter Group was developed in close cooperation with TAHMO and designed for African conditions. It has no moving parts, which reduces maintenance effort. The network includes more than 600 stations deployed across 20 African countries.

Placement

TAHMO also innovated on station placement through the School2School program. Schools across Africa can apply to become sister schools and host a station at a safe outdoor location. Each school nominates two staff members responsible for basic maintenance and data transfer.

TAHMO also created an education program so stations and data can be integrated into curricula. Teachers attend professional development workshops on education modules and classroom activities. Schools can exchange experiences with other sister schools and provide feedback on educational activities and data access.

Data distribution and usage

Weather data is displayed through an interactive interface on the TAHMO website and a specialised portal. The information is accessible to the general public. Raw data is also made freely available to national hydrometeorological institutions, researchers, and scientific teams.

Commercial use involves a fee based on geographic coverage and the level of exclusivity within a sector, while respecting national policy on data usage. Revenue supports maintaining and expanding the network.

Outlook

TAHMO aims to expand the station network across more African countries and reach a goal of 20,000 operational stations. Local weather data is expected to be combined with weather and climate models and satellite observations to improve insight into water and energy stocks and fluxes.

John Selker, TAHMO co-director, summarises the ambition.

"We're solving the problem of getting climate data into African hands. We're building the bridge between the climate and productivity."

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