China Builds 100-Meter Weather Tower in South China Sea

China has completed construction of its first 100-meter vertical gradient meteorological observation tower in the South China Sea, a facility designed to dramatically improve typhoon tracking and weather forecasting across one of the world’s most storm-prone regions. The tower was hoisted into position on June 17 in the Yangjiang sea area, approximately 80 kilometers from the coasts of Yangjiang, Leizhou Peninsula, and Hainan Island, according to People’s Daily.

A Strategic Gap Filled

For years, the distant South China Sea has lacked routine vertical gradient observation points, creating a “monitoring blind zone” that made it difficult to capture the fine structure of typhoons and severe convective weather systems. The new tower sits directly on the main typhoon path, giving it what Chinese authorities describe as significant strategic geographical value.

“This tower, described as the ‘Dinghai Shenzhen’ (Sea-Calming Divine Needle) of the South China Sea, is located in the central sea area approximately 80 km from the coasts of Yangjiang, Leizhou Peninsula, and Hainan Island, sitting directly on the main path of typhoons,” ScienceNet reported, citing the China Meteorological Administration.

Technical Specifications

The tower stands 103 meters tall, with a main body of 60 meters and a layered observation layout at 10-meter intervals. Its top platform, measuring 4.5 meters in diameter, carries the South China Sea’s first X-band dual-polarization phased array radar — a system with an effective detection radius of 60 kilometers and spatial resolution of 30 meters.

According to the 21st Century Business Herald, the tower is equipped with full-elevation deployment of wind, temperature, humidity, and pressure multi-element sensors, enabling 24/7 real-time data collection at multiple height levels. The hardware is specifically adapted for the South China Sea’s challenging environment of high salinity, high humidity, and strong wind and waves, and is designed to withstand Category 17 super typhoons.

Advanced Monitoring Capabilities

The platform’s observation system can retrieve three-dimensional spatial distribution dynamics of temperature, humidity, wind, air pressure, and aerosols in the atmospheric boundary layer. It can identify inversion layers and atmospheric transport channels, significantly improving pollution tracing, numerical forecasting, and severe weather warning capabilities.

Leveraging the platform’s layout, Yangjiang’s meteorological observation frontier has been extended approximately 140 kilometers further into the open sea compared to original shore-based observation. This allows scientists to capture the internal three-dimensional structure of typhoons with unprecedented detail as they traverse the South China Sea.

Economic and Scientific Applications

The tower’s data will serve multiple industries. Yangjiang has developed into a major offshore wind power hub, and more accurate wind profiling at different heights will improve power output forecasting and operational efficiency. The data will also support marine aquaculture safety, open-sea shipping operations, and maritime disaster prevention.

On the scientific front, the platform will serve as a key research carrier for studying South China Sea marine atmospheric boundary layer evolution, land-sea flux exchange, typhoon genesis and development mechanisms, and monsoon fluctuation observation. The project has reserved standardized equipment expansion interfaces for later installation of wave, ocean current, seawater temperature and salinity, and air-sea flux monitoring equipment.

Integration into Broader Network

Once fully operational, the tower will work in conjunction with shore-based meteorological radar, island and offshore platform automatic observation stations, and satellite remote sensing to form a comprehensive land-sea-air-space integrated three-dimensional observation system. This network will provide minute-level real-time data and forecasting products covering surrounding waters.

CCTV reported that the project team will next conduct equipment debugging and system hardware and software integration optimization, continuing to improve the coordinated monitoring layout.

What’s Next

The completion of this tower marks what Chinese officials describe as a critical breakthrough in the construction of a three-dimensional marine meteorological observation system in the South China Sea. As the project moves into its operational phase, the focus will shift to integrating the tower’s data into existing forecasting models and expanding its capabilities with additional oceanographic sensors. The data gathered will not only enhance scientific understanding of the region’s complex weather systems but also provide tangible benefits for the millions of people living along China’s southeastern coastline who face the annual threat of typhoon season.