Imagine a world without weather forecasts. Hard to fathom isn’t it? Right here in Prague stands the \u010cesk\u00fd hydrometeorologick\u00fd \u00fastav. It is the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute. Locals call it \u010cHM\u00da. This institute is the central state office for all things air weather and water.
\u010cHM\u00da’s main job is to study air quality meteorology climatology and hydrology. It provides expert services in these areas. These services primarily support the Czech government. The \u010cesk\u00fd hydrometeorologick\u00fd \u00fastav also operates a warning service. This includes the Smog Warning and Regulation System. The \u010cesk\u00fd hydrometeorologick\u00fd \u00fastav runs station networks and provides expert services. It also conducts scientific research. This research focuses on areas of interest to the institute.
The \u010cesk\u00fd hydrometeorologick\u00fd \u00fastav started long ago. In 1919 the State Meteorological Institute was founded. The State Hydrological Institute followed soon after. These were the seeds of today’s \u010cHM\u00da. On January 1 1954 these institutes merged. This created the Hydrometeorological Institute. Hydrology became part of the organization.
The importance of air quality grew. In 1967 air pollution control joined the institute. In 1969 after federalization the institute split. There were now hydrometeorological institutes in Prague and Bratislava. The Prague institute became the \u010cesk\u00fd hydrometeorologick\u00fd \u00fastav.
The main headquarters of the \u010cesk\u00fd hydrometeorologick\u00fd \u00fastav is in Prague-Komo\u0159any. You will find it at Na \u0160abatce 17. A new \u010cHM\u00da building opened here in June 2021. It houses both meteorologists and hydrologists. This promotes better teamwork. The building and equipment cost 130 million Czech crowns. Construction began in 2019.
The \u010cesk\u00fd hydrometeorologick\u00fd \u00fastav has other offices besides Prague. There are regional branches in six other Czech cities. These are in Brno Ostrava Plze\u0148 \u00dast\u00ed nad Labem Hradec Kr\u00e1lov\u00e9 and \u010cesk\u00e9 Bud\u011bjovice. Not all sections are at each branch.
\u010cHM\u00da has three specialized sections. These are meteorology and climatology hydrology and air quality. There are also two support sections. These cover finance administration and information technology. The director’s office completes the structure. Mark Rieder has been the director since 2017.
The Air Quality division has many departments. These include Air Quality Information System Emission and Sources and Modelling and Expertise Pool. Also included are National Inventorization System Air Quality Monitoring Central Air Quality Laboratory and Calibration Laboratory. The Modelling and Expertise Pool department develops air pollution dispersion models. These models help prepare expert reports and air quality forecasts.
The SYMOS97 air pollution dispersion model was developed at the \u010cHM\u00da. It models how continuous plumes spread. These plumes can come from various sources. The model can handle complex terrain. It can even simulate cooling tower plumes.
From 1979 to 2000 the \u010cesk\u00fd hydrometeorologick\u00fd \u00fastav used a meteorological radar. It was on the Libu\u0161 meteorological tower in Prague. Today the Brdy meteorological tower is used. It was built in 2000. The \u010cesk\u00fd hydrometeorologick\u00fd \u00fastav ensures we are well-informed about our environment.