Google introduced 18 more countries in Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America to its Artificial intelligence – AI Google flood forecasting tools, which were initially released in India and Bangladesh in 2018.
Google has been working on a system that can forecast floods using artificial intelligence for a number of years. It has also been designed especially for detecting tools for wildfires. The company declared that it is extending such tools ahead of the COP27 climate summit, which will take place the following week.
First, Google says it will offer flood forecasts for river basins in another 18 countries. Those are Brazil, Colombia, Sri Lanka, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Malawi, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Angola, South Sudan, Namibia, Liberia and South Africa.
The company has introduced Google “Flood Hub” worldwide. It displays flood forecasts and indicates when and where floods may occur. There are specific colour-coded pins for indication. This flood tracking Google feature gathers information on risky areas so that authorities can assist the people who need it.
Previously the company launched its flood forecasting project in 2018 in India and Bangladesh as an attempt to minimize the catastrophic damage caused by floods via notifications. This alert will be getting to Android devices and phones which have the Google system app installed.
Yossi Matias, Google vice president of engineering and crisis response lead, wrote in a blog post, “This expansion in geographic coverage is possible thanks to our recent breakthroughs in AI Google-based flood forecasting models, and we’re committed to expanding to more countries”.
Scenario of Flood and Improvement by Google AI Flood Forecast:
More than 250 million people experience severe flood damage annually, according to Matias. Flooding is predicted to increase due to global warming, making flood detection systems like the one Google is developing significantly.
“In the first three years, we expanded our programme to cover much of India and Bangladesh, working in partnership with the Indian Central Water Commission and with the Bangladesh Water Development Board, covering an area with about 220 million people and sending out 40 million potentially life-saving alerts,” Google in a blog post.
According to senior staff engineering manager, Sella Nevo, the service can provide flood warnings up to a week in advance using weather forecasting data. The advance warning window was formerly 48 hours since the AI model used data from water level gauges data.
“In 2021, our operational systems were further expanded to cover an area with over 360 million people. Thanks to better flood prediction technology, we sent out over 115 million alerts — that’s about triple the amount we previously sent out,” it added.
After piloting it in the US, the company has expanded its wildfire tracking Google programme to other nations.
The service identifies wildfire boundaries and displays its current position in Search and Maps using new Artificial Intelligence algorithms based on satellite images.
Benefits of the Google Wildfire Forecast:
As for wildfires, Matias wrote that Google detects “wildfire boundaries using new AI Google models based on satellite imagery and [shows] their real-time location in Search and Maps.”
The business said last year that it will make its application for tracking wildfires available globally. Machine learning is increasingly being used to enhance wildfire identification and monitoring. The upgraded tracking features are initially accessible in the US, Mexico, Canada, and parts of Australia. For tracking wildfires, the business also uses information from NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellites.
“Since July, we’ve covered more than 30 big wildfire events in the US and Canada, helping inform people and firefighting teams with over 7 million views in Search and Maps. Today, wildfire detection is now available in the US, Canada, Mexico and parts of Australia,” Google stated.
Matias also discussed some of the further climate change mitigation efforts being made by Google and its parent firm Alphabet, such as an AI-powered system to improve traffic signals and lessen emissions from idling vehicles. The Mineral project, run by Alphabet’s X moon-shot division, aims to increase the sustainability and productivity of the world food supply.
Google collaboration with Central Water Commission:
In India, Google in the association with Central Water Commission (CWC) track flood and flooded area. It provides the flood forecast for a week. The user will get a clear overview of the most important data if there is a current flooding issue in the region, including the increase or decrease in the water level the following day and a description of the recent event with detailed instructions.
Additionally, a colour-coded map of the flooded areas is displayed. Clicking on this map launches a bigger, more comprehensive version in Google Maps, where users may zoom in to better comprehend water levels in certain places.
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