As climate change brings increasingly extreme and unpredictable weather, forecasting its patterns grows more vital – and more difficult. One startup thinks distributed ledger technology holds the key to facing this challenge head-on.
WeatherXM, a Montreal-based firm, aims to leverage the decentralized nature of blockchain to crowdsource millions of weather data points from a global network of sensors. By compiling granular, real-time observations from diverse locations, the company hopes to train more accurate forecasting models using artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms.
Traditional meteorological approaches rely heavily on a limited number of government-run monitoring stations to compile the baseline data that underpins projections. But distributed sensors offer hyper-localized readings that could help predict microclimates and catch fluctuations traditional methods may miss. WeatherXM wants to tap this wealth of “edge data” by incentivizing individual contributors through its native token system.
If successful, the project could yield benefits for many. Farmers could better plan for extreme rains or droughts. Infrastructure managers might avoid power outages from unforeseen storms. Emergency responders could more efficiently deploy aid after natural disasters. Ordinary citizens may simply face fewer surprises when stepping outside each day.
By corraling sensor data via blockchain, WeatherXM aims to democratize access to weather intelligence while strengthening overall forecast validity in a warming world that seems to defy easy prediction more each year. Their novel approach offers hope that distributed technologies may help humanity better understand – and hopefully mitigate – climate change impacts to come.