Chinese Weather Forecast Reaches Intermediate-Advanced Level 　　After years of construction, China has made remarkable achievements in meteorological modernization, with its weather observation and service ability being close to or having reached the level of intermediate developed countries, and the goal for China's meteorology development prior to 2000 has been realized, said Director Wen Kegang of the Chinese Meteorological Bureau at a national conference which opened in Xi'an on January 13. 　　As Wen said, when the 11th Typhoon swept over 11 provinces of China in 1997, it was the accurate forecast of meteorological departments that had helped timely evacuation of 1.43 million people and thus avoided enormous loss of life and property of the people. After watching the recorded tapes of the whole observation process, colleagues from US NASA commented that this kind of high-quality service was rarely seen even in the United States. 　　China is one of the few countries that can develop and launch meteorological satellites. A great many of meteorologists from developed countries who have come on a visit to China looked upon it as a meteorology advanced country, according to the director. 　　 HomeNews 1999-01-14 Page5 Full Story in Chinese