Ciram – the Center for Information on the Environmental Resources and Hydrometeorology of Santa Catarina – is the organization that monitors the weather and the climate in Santa Catarina, in the south of Brazil. One of Ciram's missions is to minimize the negative impacts of adverse meteorological conditions on the population and the economy, and one of the services it provides is the issuing of severe weather alerts.
Ciram is connected to Epagri, which specializes in agropecuary research and rural extension in Santa Catarina.
Santa Catarina is one of the Brazilian states most affected by weather and climate adversities. The state is subject to a great variety of conditions, including droughts, extratropical cyclones on the coast, and snow in the mountains. Since the state is also a very popular tourist destination throughout the year, travelers must get as much information as possible about weather conditions in each region and in each season.
Even though it is still not available in English, the Ciram website offers several resources that can be useful to non-Portuguese speaking Brazil travelers. Use them to empower your travel planning and your weather awareness during your stay in Brazil.
Here are the resources available on the home page:
Clickable Map of Santa Catarina
Divided into ten regions, the map of Santa Catarina is clickable for up-to-date daily weather and a forecast for the coming week.
As you click on a region, its name appears at the top of the chart (Oeste, or West, for example).
To the left of the map, where it says Escolha a cidade (choose the city), you can click for the cities monitored in that region.
Below the map, the illustrated weather report and forecast features manhâ/tarde/noite (morning/afternoon/evening) subdivisions; low and high temperatures in Celsius; direction, average speed and gust speed of winds (direção, vento and rajada). The direction of the wind is abbreviated in English.
Also illustrated, the important feature Fenômenos (Phenomena) lets the user know if there are significant weather alerts. If there are no alerts, you will see an image that looks like a traffic sign saying sem ocorrência.
Satellite Image
You can enlarge the image (Ampliar), see the animation (Ver animação), or view a synoptic chart. To the right of the satellite image, a meteorologist explains the image in Portuguese.
Previsão, Agricultura and Oceano
To the far right of the home page, some of the features of interest to travelers are Mapas de Previsão, with rain maps and wind maps; the UV index map and a sailing and fishing page with the Beaufort Wind Scale in Portuguese.
