The Met Office launched its most significant scientific upgrade in more than three years on February 9, 2026, aimed at delivering more accurate local weather forecasts for residents of Portsmouth, Hampshire.
The change uses the Met Office’s Next Generation Modelling System (NGMS) — including the LFRic modelling code — together with its Microsoft Azure–based supercomputer (the hardware transition completed in May 2025) to run higher-resolution models and process more observations that improve forecasts for coastal conditions. The upgrade is designed to better predict sudden events such as intense localized downpours, low-level cloud and fog that can affect travel across the Solent.
The improved information will help workers on the Southsea Coastal Scheme, which is in its final stages and scheduled for completion in late 2026, to plan construction tasks between tides and incoming storms. It will also help transport services prepare for strong coastal winds that frequently disrupt Hovertravel hovercraft and ferry crossings across the Solent.
Met Office Director of Science, Professor Simon Vosper, said the upgrade improves the representation of cloud in the modelling system — ‘particularly the height of the cloud cover’ — and has markedly improved rainfall forecasts, allowing more precise timing of when rain will start and how long it will last in specific parts of the city.
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