13 February to 16 March 2017 / Online and Vilnius, Lithuania
The Baltic+ course is a joint initiative of the National Meteorological Services of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. Forecasters from Belarus, Russia and Ukraine are also invited. This year the course 2017 was organised by the Lithuanian HMS in Vilnius on 14–16 March.
The main topic of the course was severe summer convection in the Baltic region. The purpose of the training was to improve the ability to correctly interpret satellite products and teach forecasters to use satellite data and tools in more professional way for nowcasting and early warnings. EUMETSAT satellite and NWP data were used to identify clouds and MCS —their development and weakening.
The course consisted of online and classroom phases. To prepare participants for the classroom phase and reduce differences in their knowledge, an online phase started in February. The Moodle platform enabled participants to use training resources, to discuss on forums, do learning activities, and complete self-assessment quizzes. The three-day workshop in Vilnius mostly focused on practice. Participants enjoyed working on a simulator of a severe storm case from 11 July 2016, which took place in Lithuania.
Successful participants in both phases have been awarded certificates.