Event Name: How We Measure The Weather: A Brief History And Where We're Going Next
Event time and place: ESJ 2204, Dec 10, 4:30-5:30 PM
Meteorology is an ever evolving profession and one that is heavily affected by the increased use of digital technology. The use of digital weather technology has led to controversy due to their lack of calibration and the loss of detail from past meteorology. For example, past meteorologists would take written measurements about cloud cover and weather conditions that could not be defined by a number, however, in recent years there are only numerical measurements taken such as high and low temperatures and precipitation. Despite the technology that allows these values to be measured continuously, the data is often skewed. Weather stations have their data skewed due to shade, obstacles for rain gauge collection, and nearby ground cover such as black cement that can cause an increased temperature. Some meteorologists are searching for ways to implement better meteorology techniques to increase credibility of weather measurements, such as implementation of better calibrated weather stations that are used by companies such as Maryland Mesonet. Maryland Mesonet is a company with the mission to "...design, build, and operate a network of high-quality, closely spaced, rapid-sampling weather monitoring and data collection systems across the state..." Maryland Mesonet has created better calibrated, better maintained, and highly accurate weather data collection stations all across the state that will better display weather forecasts and report potential weather emergencies.
The points delivered in this presentation by one of Mesonet's managers, James Hyde, were very convincing and brought light to the benefits and negative effects of the digital revolution in meteorology. James Hyde explained and showed past meteorological techniques and strategies that gave us in depth descriptions of the weather every hour, and showed us how that detail has been lost with the use of modern technology. He showed many examples of weather journals that were used to provide regions with their weather forecasts for the day, and showed how today there are three numbers that define the days conditions: high, low, and precipitation. There is no longer detail or explanations of what the weather looks like, and we only care about the numbers mentioned above. Despite the loss of detail, James Hyde showed us an example of a past rain measurement device that failed to work due to the lack of technology. On July 4th, 1956 in Uniontown, Maryland, there was a world record set for rainfall in a single minute with 1.23 inches. However, the pen used on the rain gauge had to move across the paper so fast to measure the rain that the middle section of the line was missing because of how fast the pen was moving. This instance showed an example of how past equipment was not able to properly measure weather and there was a need for upgraded technology. Another point that I previously mentioned in the summary was how weather stations can get very inaccurate readings which were proved in the presentation through images of weather stations around our area. Backyard weather stations often are covered by trees, fences, or other forms of shade that cause temperature readings to be reported as lower than they actually are. The opposite can also be seen when weather stations are placed near pavement or rocks that have a low albedo, absorbing light and therefore more heat, causing temperature readings to be too high. Backyard weather stations also can be overgrown by plants or leaves, or covered by roofs and umbrellas that can prevent rainfall from entering, and again reporting false data. Many backyard weather stations report to the National Weather Service with these improper readings that cause skewed data to be reported to residents all across the United States.
James Hyde works at Maryland Mesonet and showed how the company has taken initiative to gather accurate and credible weather data across the state of Maryland. The 39 weather stations put up by Maryland Mesonet are able to measure temperature, humidity, wind, sunshine, clouds, soil temperature, soil moisture, rainfall, and snow. The weather stations are accurately spaced out across the state to give valuable data while keeping the number of stations at a level that can be properly maintained. Allowing for maintenance and calibration every few months allows for highly accurate data that can be used to give real time and trusted data. The goals for the future of Maryland Mesonet are to have 75 stations by 2027 that will be able to make data visualizations that can be used to study the weather and make decisions. I did not notice any logical fallacies or failures of critical thinking in the presentation, and I believe that it was very informative and showed multiple perspectives on the topic.