BMKG Has Announced MotoGP Will Be Raining: It Was Detected A Few Days Before

President Jokowi while watching the rain-colored Mandalika MotoGP (Photo: BPMI Setpres/Laily Rachev)

JAKARTA - BMKG has predicted that the Mandalika Circuit area will be rained during the MotoGP event on Sunday (20/3) since a few days earlier.

"The BMKG has detected a fairly strong signal or the potential for rain on the 20th since several days earlier," said BMKG Weather Forecaster Nanda Alfuadi in a video received in Jakarta, Tuesday, March 22.

To support MotoGP activities, BMKG provides special information related to weather on the BMKG public website which can be accessed openly. On this page, BMKG provides current and future weather information or forecasts.

Based on the BMKG analysis, the rain that flushed the circuit area was partly due to the condition of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) when it was in a transition period from the rainy season to the dry season. During the transition period, it is likely that local and high-intensity rain will occur accompanied by lightning or lightning that often occurs in the afternoon or evening.

"We saw that during yesterday's activity rain clouds began to form at around 12.00 noon then the clouds grew bigger and finally it rained. This cloud is a type of cumulonimbus which can produce lightning and strong winds. The clouds in the afternoon around 15.00 began to decay then at 16.00 it rained started to subside, only light rain or drizzle," said Nanda as quoted by Antara.

In addition to the transition period, in the south of West Nusa Tenggara, the seeds of a tropical storm have grown which are now tropical storm Charlotte, which is moving southwest to the south of Indonesia.

The existence of these tropical storm seeds causes wind patterns starting from Central Java, East Java, Bali, NTB, NTT to form areas of wind deceleration and wind confluence.

"In general, this area will be very supportive for the growth of rain clouds in this wind-meeting area, so this is what also strengthens the potential for rain cloud growth yesterday at the Mandalika Circuit," said Nanda.

Regarding the role of rain handler Rara Isti Wulandari who acted in the pouring rain at the Mandalika Circuit, the BMKG could not comment further because from a scientific point of view it was very different.

"We use technology, scientific data and a clear scientific theoretical basis so that these two things are different between local wisdom and science," he added.

He explained that the technology carried out by the BMKG in collaboration with the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) and the Indonesian Air Force (TNI Air Force) is a weather modification that conditions so that as much rain as possible does not fall heavily in the Mandalika Circuit area by seeding in rain clouds. to Mandalika.

He gave an example, when the rain clouds are in the north then the Mandalika Circuit is in the south with the direction of cloud movement to the south, then seeding is done so the clouds will ripen faster and the rain will fall faster before reaching the circuit area.