New Zealand meteorologists are warning the new 5G phone network could affect their predictions – and put lives at risk.
It comes as Vodafone unveils their plans to introduce the new technology across the country by the end of the year.
New Zealand keeps seeing more and more violent and dangerous weather because of climate change.
“We do need to have very accurate forecasts if we want to give people the kind of heads up they need to make decisions to evacuate and things like that,” says Nava Fedaeff from the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA).
But a looming threat to accurate forecasting made landfall on Thursday, as Vodafone announced it would partner with Nokia.
“It’s a big deal,” says Vodafone’s CEO Jason Paris.
A big and exciting deal for movie streamers and cellphone users – but an even bigger, more concerning deal for meteorologists.
NIWA’s forecasters are among a global cohort of scientists who are worried the frequency used by 5G will disturb the frequency used by one of the most important weather satellites.
To read more about NIWA’s concerns and about the new Vodafone 5G roll-out, please click here.