Transcript THE OKLAHOMA MESONET: EVOLUTION FROM REAL-TIME WEATHER NETWORK TO CLIMATE NETWORK Christopher Fiebrich and Kevin A.

THE OKLAHOMA MESONET:
EVOLUTION FROM REAL-TIME
WEATHER NETWORK TO
CLIMATE NETWORK
Christopher Fiebrich and Kevin A. Kloesel
Oklahoma Climatological Survey
Norman, OK, USA
The Oklahoma Mesonet
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Commissioned in 1994
120 stations
Report every 5 minutes
Over 4 billion observations
Primarily for Real-Time Weather
Data Quality is Top Priority
• Over 4 Billion high quality observations in the
Mesonet archive
– Every sensor calibrated before deployed to station
and re-calibrated at defined intervals
– Every site visited 4 times annually on average for
site maintenance, sensor testing, and metadata
updates
– Comprehensive automated and manual quality
assurance
Extremes Measured in 2011
• Coldest Temperature Ever Recorded in State
History
– 10 February 2011
– Nowata Mesonet station: -35 °C (-31 °F)
– Reviewed by State Climate Extremes Committee of
the National Climate Data Center
Record Cold
Extremes Measured in 2011
• Highest Wind Gust Recorded in State History
– 24 May 2011
– El Reno Mesonet station: 67.4 m/s (151 mph)
Record Wind Gust
4:20 PM LT
4:25 PM LT
Extremes Measured in 2011
• Hottest Average Monthly Temperature for Any
State and Any Month
– July 2011
– Statewide Average Temperature: 30.5 °C (86.9 °F)
– Grandfield Mesonet site exceeded 37 °C (100 °F) on
101 days (old state record was 86 days)
Mesonet Inclusion in COOP
• COOP: For more than
100 years, the U.S.
COOP Network of the
National Weather
Service has monitored
the U.S. climate
• The NWS began
incorporating Mesonet
stations in the COOP
network in 2008. Today
more than 70 Mesonet
stations are official
COOP sites
Mesonet Inclusion in COOP
• Mesonet data now included in official climate
division average calculations
• Midnight-to-midnight observations from
Mesonet eliminate the need for time of
observation adjustments
Mesonet Continuity Sites
• Sensor Upgrades are Inevitable
– Naturally ventilated to aspirated temperature
shelters in 2008
– Relative humidity sensor (Vaisala HMP45) no
longer manufactured
– Evaluation of new rain gauge models
– Transition to thermocouple sensors for soil
temperature
Continuity Sites
• 5 stations across the state selected
– Minimal impact from anthropogenic sources
– Minimal impact from wind obstructions
– Minimal slope
– History of very high data quality
– High likelihood of long-term stability
• Will provide long-term (multiple years)
overlap of old sensor and new model
Continuity Sites
Questions?