About HB Weather...

Whitmore Park Weather Station

The "heart" of HB Weather is a La Crosse WS 2355 Wireless Weather Station. This device captures data from several sensors, and loads it into a desktop PC, where it can be viewed and analysed.
Wind direction and strength are supplied by sensors atop a mast mounted on the roof-peak. Two anemometers measure windspeed and gust. Temperature and humidity figures come from sensors mounted in a Stevenson screen, located on an open area of lawn some distance from the house. Rainfall is captured by a  Snowden Pattern manual raingauge, and rainfall rate and duration is supplied by the WS 2355 tipping bucket gauge. Sunshine hours are recorded by an Instromet electronic sunshine recorder. Its sensor lives at the top of the mast with the anemometers, to enable it to "see" a true horizon. Observations of ground-state, frost intensity, and general weather conditions are manual.

The siting and exposure of the instruments is a best-case compromise for a suburban garden, and follows Met Office guidelines as far as the environment allows.

 

 

Data Analysis and Storage:

Data is stored by the WS 2355 on the computer's hard disk. The day's figures can be reviewed to determine the timing, duration, and severity of significant weather events. For example, rainfall intensities, rate of barometric change, and average windspeeds are accessible from this data. For data collection and display, we rely on the clever and user-friendly "Cumulus" programme from SandaySoft, which runs 24hrs/7days. Data analysis and archiving is managed by a home-brewed database. Data values are recorded on a midnight-to midnight basis.

 

My thanks to: Paul Axford for the Sir Ian Axford Memorial Napier webcam And to Tuki Winery, for their great vineyard webcam. Visit their website at www.tuki.co.nz.

Please BOOKMARK this website and revisit it regularly to get the latest info.