[2025 National Audit] Korea Meteorological Administration Struggles with Frequent Equipment Failures Including Supercomputers

Eight Supercomputer Storage Failures in Five Years
600 AWS Equipment Malfunctions, 33-Hour Recovery Time
National Assembly: "Fundamental Improvement in Management System Needed"

It has been revealed that frequent malfunctions have occurred in meteorological equipment, including the Korea Meteorological Administration's supercomputers. The need for stable management of the agency's equipment was raised in the National Assembly.

On October 17, Kim Jooyoung, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, disclosed data titled "Status of Supercomputer Malfunctions and Errors" received from the National Meteorological Supercomputer Center. According to the data, there have been eight cases of storage server failures-core components of the supercomputer-over the past five years, with three of those incidents occurring this year alone.

The Korea Meteorological Administration first introduced supercomputers in 1999 and is currently operating its fifth unit. Failures in the supercomputers have resulted in repair costs and other related expenses.

The National Meteorological Supercomputer serves as a core infrastructure, operating numerical weather prediction models based on various meteorological observation data received from around the world. It produces scientific forecasts for future weather changes and promptly provides this information to meteorological forecasters and related agencies. Malfunctions in the supercomputer can lead to reduced accuracy in weather predictions or delays in the provision of meteorological information.

On August 14, when heavy rain fell concentrated in the northeastern and northwestern areas of Seoul, the Jungnang Stream flowing through Wolgye-dong, Nowon-gu, Seoul, overflowed, and restoration work on the walking trail is being carried out. Photo by Dongju Yoon

Regarding this issue, Assemblyman Kim Jooyoung stated, "With sudden heavy rains, typhoons, and abnormal weather events increasing, the stability of the forecasting system is more important than ever," adding, "The Korea Meteorological Administration must thoroughly analyze the recurring causes of malfunctions and work to establish a stable operational system."

Frequent malfunctions of the Korea Meteorological Administration's Automatic Weather System (AWS), which automatically observes key meteorological elements such as temperature, humidity, wind direction, wind speed, and precipitation and provides real-time data, have also become a concern.

Assemblyman Kim Hyungdong of the People Power Party introduced data submitted by the Korea Meteorological Administration, revealing that a total of 600 malfunctions occurred in the 640 AWS units operated by the agency as of last year. The average recovery time reached 33 hours and 40 minutes, exceeding a full day (24 hours). Among all devices, 283 units had never experienced a malfunction, while 141 units broke down more than twice.

In response to this issue, the Korea Meteorological Administration explained that "since AWS units are installed outdoors, malfunctions are inevitable depending on the weather." Regarding this, Assemblyman Kim Hyungdong argued, "Outdoor exposure is already a given operational condition, so citing this as a reason is merely an excuse," and urged, "The Korea Meteorological Administration should not simply replace equipment, but should establish a big data-based predictive and diagnostic system to fundamentally improve management and reduce the occurrence of malfunctions."