Transcript The Oklahoma Mesonet: Creating a Multi

The Oklahoma Mesonet:
Creating a Multi-Purpose
Network
Ronald L. Elliott
Biosystems & Agricultural Engineering Dept.
Oklahoma State University
Topics To Be Addressed
• What is the Oklahoma Mesonet?
• How did the Oklahoma Mesonet
come to be?
What is the Oklahoma Mesonet?
• A multi-purpose, statewide, environmental
monitoring network
• A unique information infrastructure
emphasizing value-added applications
• An active partnership between Oklahoma State
University and the University of Oklahoma
• A successful model for inter-agency
cooperation
• A valuable resource that is meeting important
state needs
• A state-of-the-art network that is recognized
nationally and internationally
The Physical Network
Remote Stations
(data collection)
• 115 Mesonet stations
– at least one in each of Oklahoma’s 77
counties
– average station spacing = approx. 30 km
• 42 USDA-ARS Micronet stations
(reduced set of sensors)
– research watershed near Chickasha
– average station spacing = approx. 5 km
Self-Contained Sites
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Self-reliant, 2-way
communications
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Solar powered
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Data storage capacity:
from ~5 to nearly 30
days
Variables Measured at All
Mesonet Stations
• Air temperature (1.5 m)
• Relative humidity (1.5 m)
• Rainfall
• Atmospheric pressure
• Solar radiation
• Wind speed & direction (10 m)
• Soil temperature under bare soil and
sod (10 cm)
Supplemental Measurements
(~100 of the 115 stations)
• Air temperature @ 9 m
• Wind speed @ 2 m
• Sod soil temperature @ 5 and 30 cm
• Bare soil temperature @ 5 cm
• Soil moisture @ 2 to 4 depths
(58 stations have all 4 soil moisture depths)
“OASIS” Measurements
• Research emphasis
(surface energy balance)
• 90 “standard” sites
• 10 “super” sites
Equipment Deployed and
Maintained
• More than 3000 sensors
• More than 1800 dataloggers/
radios/power systems/etc.
Maintenance Activities in 2001
• Conducted 430 standardized
“routine” site visits
• Acquired 4800 digital site photos
• Calibrated 1475 instruments in the
laboratory
• Resolved 950 instrument “trouble
tickets”
Communications Network
(data transmission)
• Line-of-sight radio to/from OLETS
• Oklahoma Law Enforcement
Telecommunications System
– reliable
– high bandwidth
– two-way communications
• OLETS to/from Mesonet computers
Central Computers
(data processing & sharing)
• Data ingest and “hole filling” software
– 1.15 million observations per day
– 99.8% archiving efficiency in 2001
• Extensive data quality assurance
routines
• More than 150 unique web-based
products
• ~63,000 files per day
• ~1,500 web accounts
• ~33 million web hits in 2001
Oklahoma Climatological Survey
• Mesonet’s operational home
• State agency based on the OU campus
in Norman
• Legislative mandate to acquire, process,
and disseminate climate and weather
information for use by the state's
citizens
Topics To Be Addressed
• What is the Oklahoma Mesonet?
• How did the Oklahoma
Mesonet come to be?
The Mesonet’s Timeline
1980’s
Pre-funding phase
1990-1993
Design-and-build phase
1994-present
Operational phase
Early to Mid 1980’s
• Stillwater (OSU)
– Established ad-hoc committee on AgroMeteorological Systems
– Sought to improve weather data availability
for agricultural applications
• Norman (NWS, OU, NSSL)
– Tulsa flood of 1984 stimulated thinking
– Proposed concept of a statewide
mesonetwork
1987
• Proponents in Stillwater and
Norman became aware of each
other’s interests
• Informal, cooperative, working
team was quickly established
August 1988
• Open meeting in Norman to present the
Oklahoma Mesonetwork concept
• Preliminary proposal discussed
• Many organizations represented
• Very positive feedback
1988 – 1990
• Refined the proposal
• Approached the Governor’s office
• Eventually were awarded $2 million
in oil overcharge funds
(via the Oklahoma Dept. of Commerce)
The Mesonet’s Timeline
1980’s
Pre-funding phase
1990-1993
Design-and-build phase
1994-present
Operational phase
The Steering Committee
• 6 individuals with varied backgrounds
• Shared governance (OU & OSU)
• Empowered by university administration
• Meetings as needed
• Consensus decisions
• Prepared agendas, minutes, reports
• Shared vision and close working
relationships
Current SC Members
• Ken Crawford (meteorologist)
• Ron Elliott (agricultural engineer)
• Howard Johnson (climatologist)
• Steve Stadler (geographer)
• Dave Stensrud (meteorologist)
• Al Sutherland (horticulturalist)
Previous SC Members
• Gerrit Cuperus (entomologist)
• Chuck Doswell (meteorologist)
• Jim Duthie (plant pathologist)
• Mike Eilts (meteorologist)
The Mesonet Manager
• Oversees day-to-day activities
• Technical & managerial responsibilities
• Reports to SC & OCS leadership
Mesonet Managers
(listed chronologically)
• Fred Brock
• Tim Hughes
• Scott Richardson
• Chris Fiebrich
The Planning Subcommittees
• Helped ensure that good decisions were
made
• Encouraged a sense of ownership in the
system
• Were mission oriented
• Had a reasonably short life
• Interacted with related subcommittees
• Made recommendations to the steering
committee
Subcommittee Themes
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Site Standards
Site Selection
Out-Year Funding
Station Maintenance
Quality Assurance
Data Management
Products/Dissemination
Parameter Selection
Sensor Specification
User Fees/Data Sharing
Stakeholder Representation
on Subcommittees
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Oklahoma State University
University of Oklahoma
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
U.S. Geological Survey
USDA Agricultural Research Service
USDA Soil Conservation Service
National Severe Storms Laboratory
National Weather Service Forecast Office
NEXRAD Operational Support Facility
Oklahoma Water Resources Board
Stillwater Emergency Operations Center
Private-sector meteorology
Retrospective Observations on
Subcommittees
• All provided valuable input to the
Steering Committee
• Subcommittee work led to enhanced
awareness and buy-in by stakeholders
• Some topics were front-burner issues
early on (site standards, site selection,
etc.)
• Other topics tended to receive more
focus at a later date (out-year funding,
user fees, etc.)
Three Planning Forums
April – June, 1991
Stillwater, Norman, Oklahoma City
“an opportunity to learn of current
plans for the Oklahoma Mesonet and to
contribute towards its final design”
Some Technical Milestones
• March 1991
– Began data communications testing
• December 1991
– Installed first towers at field sites
• April 1992
– Established sensor calibration lab
• December 1992
– Received first FCC radio licenses
• July 1993
– Installed last of the original 108 stations
Some Programmatic Milestones
• September 1991
– OSU hired agricultural meteorologist
(J. D. Carlson)
• June 1992
– NSF funded OCS’s EARTHSTORM
educational outreach program
• August 1992
– Micronet cooperative agreement signed
with USDA-ARS
• October 1993
– Installed first public display cabinet
In 3 short years, the Mesonet
team had ….
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Hired staff with a variety of expertise
Found and leased (at no cost) 108 field sites
Decided on the variables to be measured
Performed in-house system integration
Selected, purchased & installed sensors
Developed & tested a data communications
system
• Instituted maintenance & preliminary quality
assurance procedures
• Developed value-added products and means of
dissemination
• Stayed within budget!
The Mesonet’s Timeline
1980’s
Pre-funding phase
1990-1993
Design-and-build phase
1994-present
Operational phase
Over the last 8 years …..
Evolution and maturation of procedures
related to:
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Site & equipment maintenance
Sensor calibration
Data ingest & processing
Data quality assurance
Software development
Serving the end user
Over the last 8 years ….
Considerable effort has been
expended in securing and
solidifying operational funding.
Primary Funding Sources
(for network operation)
• The Noble Foundation (1994-1995)
• State agencies (1994-1996)
• OU and OSU (1994-present)
• Federal partnerships (1994-present)
• Grants and contracts (1994-present)
• Legislature/Regents (1996-present)
• User fees (1996-present)
The vision of a multi-purpose
network has been realized ….
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Weather forecasting
Emergency management
Agriculture
Education
Research
Water resources
Energy management
Law enforcement & public safety
Transportation
Recreation
Etc.
The Oklahoma Mesonet is now:
• A proven resource
• On a firm financial footing
• Viewed as a model
• Poised for even greater service
For the Mesonet team, it’s
been a long, challenging,
exciting, and extremely
rewarding journey.