The Amazon is one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable ecosystems. Proximity to the Equator makes the region particularly susceptible to changes that produce floods, droughts and storms — events that pose serious risks to both nature and human communities.
During dry seasons, when rainfall is scarce and air temperatures are high, river levels in the Amazon basin often drop significantly. Navigability suffers, cutting off isolated communities. Fires caused by prolonged drought alter the ecosystem’s balance; deforestation driven by human activity further aggravates these effects.
In response, Brazil has implemented a monitoring system that integrates hydrometeorological data, including rainfall and river conditions, across the Amazon. Called Integrated Hydrometeorological Monitoring and Alert System (in Portuguese, SIPAMHidro), the system produces information for researchers, public agencies, and ordinary citizens. Operated by the Management and Operational Center of the Amazon Protection System (Centro Gestor e Operacional do Sistema de Proteção da Amazônia – Censipam), which reports to the Brazilian Ministry of Defense, SIPAMHidro aims to improve understanding of climate dynamics in the region.
One feature of the system is tracking atmospheric electrical discharges, i.e. lightning, via radio-frequency antennae capable of locating strikes up to 7,000 km away. These data are transmitted from Belém to the Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of São Paulo (IAG/USP). USP coordinates an international cooperation network called STARNET for detection of electrical discharges.
Public access to data is facilitated through the Raios Online portal, which shows georeferenced lightning information from sensors in Belém and Manaus, as well as nine sensors located elsewhere in Latin America and one in Cape Verde, Africa. The collected sensor data is processed in São Paulo and shared with national and international researchers.
Connectivity in the Amazon remains a challenge. To overcome this, Censipam uses RNP’s “Cipó” e-Science service, which creates end-to-end data circuits to guarantee reliable bandwidth and improved performance when speed is crucial, for instance, in real-time updates.
SIPAMHidro data serves multiple applications: improving research on the Earth’s hydrological cycle, supporting real-time operations in water resources management, meteorology, aviation safety, and energy. Inland navigation also benefits, since rivers are primary transport routes in much of the Amazon.
According to Censipam’s science and technology Analyst, Márcio Lopes, the ability to forecast extreme weather and issue alerts, such as for floods, droughts, storms or inundations, can literally save lives. State and municipal civil defense agencies rely on real-time information about severe weather to reduce natural disaster impacts in inhabited areas.
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