XINING: During the forthcoming National Day holiday, Li Delin and his colleagues will keep working at the China Global Atmosphere Watch Baseline Observatory at Mount Waliguan in northwest China’s Qinghai Province.
Located 3,816 meters above sea level on the Qinghai-Tibet plateau, the observatory went into operation in 1994.
It is one of 31 global baseline observatories established by the World Meteorological Organization and the highest one in the world.
Over the past 26 years, workers at the observatory have fought against the harsh environment to monitor greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide and shared data with international meteorological organizations.
Besides greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide, the station also monitors levels of halogenated gases, aerosols, solar radiation, and radioactive substances.
Every day, more than 60,000 pieces of data are collected, according to Liu Peng, deputy head of the observatory.
“The World Meteorological Organization said that the monitoring data from Waliguan provided sufficient evidence that global greenhouse gas levels are increasing. The data is crucial for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, providing a reference for governments to implement energy conservation and emission reduction plans and targets,” said Zhang Guoqing, head of the observatory.
To ensure the proper operation of the observatory and the collection of data, ten people take turns working at the observatory.
They often eat pre-cooked food in a bid to avoid producing too much smoke, which may affect data collection.
“The job is full of hardships. But we firmly believe that our jobs will benefit future generations and protect the earth. It is a worthwhile and noble career,” said Li.
The workers are now expecting a new working area, which will be officially put into use in November.
Thus, the working area and living area will be separated, and workers of the observatory will have a better working and living environment.–Agencies
