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Concept
Weather station
Summary
A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for measuring atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include temperature, atmospheric pressure, humidity, wind speed, wind direction, and precipitation amounts. Wind measurements are taken with as few other obstructions as possible, while temperature and humidity measurements are kept free from direct solar radiation, or insolation. Manual observations are taken at least once daily, while automated measurements are taken at least once an hour. Weather conditions out at sea are taken by ships and buoys, which measure slightly different meteorological quantities such as sea surface temperature (SST), wave height, and wave period. Drifting weather buoys outnumber their moored versions by a significant amount.
Weather instrumentation
Typical weather stations have the following instruments:
Thermometer for measuring air and sea surface temperature
Barometer for measuring atmospheric pressure
Hygrometer for measuring humidity
Anemometer for measuring wind speed
Pyranometer for measuring solar radiation
Rain gauge for measuring liquid precipitation over a set period of time.
Wind sock for measuring general wind speed and wind direction
Wind vane, also called a weather vane or a weathercock: it shows which way the wind is blowing.
Evaporation pan for measuring evaporation.
In addition, at certain automated airport weather stations, additional instruments may be employed, including:
Present weather sensor Present Weather/Precipitation Identification Sensor for identifying falling precipitation
Disdrometer for measuring drop size distribution
Transmissometer for measuring visibility
Ceilometer for measuring cloud ceiling
More sophisticated stations may also measure the ultraviolet index, leaf wetness, soil moisture, soil temperature, water temperature in ponds, lakes, creeks, or rivers, and occasionally other data.
Official source
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