Important Weather Data and Devices
Regular weather updates can be found at a variety of websites, listed below. Each has their own specific use.
METAR data gives real-time data of the weather, dictating everything from wind speed to what the cloud cover is like. METAR data can usually be accessed from a nearby area's weather station via a website.
Radiosonde data is collected twice every day, once at 8am and once at 8pm. This data details the pressure, temperature, and dewpoint at various heights in the atmosphere, up to 30 kilometers.
MICROTOPS data needs to be taken manually, but it will tell you the aerosol optical depth and the direct irradiance on a normal surface by the sun at the time the MICROTOPS is taken.
METAR data gives real-time data of the weather, dictating everything from wind speed to what the cloud cover is like. METAR data can usually be accessed from a nearby area's weather station via a website.
Radiosonde data is collected twice every day, once at 8am and once at 8pm. This data details the pressure, temperature, and dewpoint at various heights in the atmosphere, up to 30 kilometers.
MICROTOPS data needs to be taken manually, but it will tell you the aerosol optical depth and the direct irradiance on a normal surface by the sun at the time the MICROTOPS is taken.
Weather Updates and Websites
1) For cloud forecasts, you can’t beat http://weather.rap.ucar.edu/model/ , but be sure to check near the time you want to run. These maps change with time.
2) For 3-day, accurate predictions of the weather, use: http://www.nws.noaa.gov/mdl/synop/products.php by following these instructions: First, click the upper left-hand box; Second, check Test Message by Station List and click on GA, Dekalb-Peachtree (KPDK); Third, scroll down and hit "Go" at the bottom to submit query.
3) If it is a cloudy day with chances of rain, you might want to watch a raincloud as it nears (and thus have an idea of when you need to close the hatch), use Weather.com. They have a map that updates every minute and shows rainfall. The #2 website above will give you an idea of when it will rain, but the rest is up to you.
2) For 3-day, accurate predictions of the weather, use: http://www.nws.noaa.gov/mdl/synop/products.php by following these instructions: First, click the upper left-hand box; Second, check Test Message by Station List and click on GA, Dekalb-Peachtree (KPDK); Third, scroll down and hit "Go" at the bottom to submit query.
3) If it is a cloudy day with chances of rain, you might want to watch a raincloud as it nears (and thus have an idea of when you need to close the hatch), use Weather.com. They have a map that updates every minute and shows rainfall. The #2 website above will give you an idea of when it will rain, but the rest is up to you.
For the Smokeblog, visit:
For Radiosonde data, visit:
First of all, you will probably want a "List: Text" plot when you head to this website. A "List: Text" plot can be saved into Wordpad and then retrieved with either Excel or with Matlab. Choose the month and day(s) that correspond to what radiosonde data you want. The term "00Z" means 00:00 GMT, and "12Z" means 12:00 GMT. For the Eastern Time Zone during Daylight Savings Time, that means 8:00am data is at "00Z," and data from then until 8:00pm is at "12Z". Most of our day runs use radiosonde data at 12Z, but night runs can require the use of a 00Z.
After you select the right day and time, click on the map at the nearest Sounding station. For Decatur, that is FFC. You can also just type the number of your station in the box below and then press Enter. Our station number in Decatur is 72215. Once you have either clicked on the map or pressed Enter, a screen should pop up with the radiosonde data. Sadly, you cannot choose only one column at a time. Since data is best when all the columns and rows are evenly filled, do not highlight the top value that starts with 1000 and the value beside it. Instead, highlight the row below and all subsequent rows until there is a blank spot of data in one of the columns. Sometimes, there is a blank spot; sometimes there is not. Highlight everything you need, copy, and paste into Wordpad as a text document. It would probably be useful to save the file as Sounding00.txt for radiosonde data taken at 00:00 GMT and as Sounding12.txt for data taken at 12:00 GMT just to keep track, and to keep each of the files in the folder for that day.
The most important columns are the first three columns. The rest are basically useless for most intents and purposes since they were derived via funny equations. The first three columns are: Pressure (in hPa, or millibars), Altitude (in meters), and Temperature (in Celsius). If using or creating a density equation or changing into Standard Units, you should use an Excel spreadsheet or Matlab to add 273 to the Temperature column and to multiply the Pressure column by 100.
After you select the right day and time, click on the map at the nearest Sounding station. For Decatur, that is FFC. You can also just type the number of your station in the box below and then press Enter. Our station number in Decatur is 72215. Once you have either clicked on the map or pressed Enter, a screen should pop up with the radiosonde data. Sadly, you cannot choose only one column at a time. Since data is best when all the columns and rows are evenly filled, do not highlight the top value that starts with 1000 and the value beside it. Instead, highlight the row below and all subsequent rows until there is a blank spot of data in one of the columns. Sometimes, there is a blank spot; sometimes there is not. Highlight everything you need, copy, and paste into Wordpad as a text document. It would probably be useful to save the file as Sounding00.txt for radiosonde data taken at 00:00 GMT and as Sounding12.txt for data taken at 12:00 GMT just to keep track, and to keep each of the files in the folder for that day.
The most important columns are the first three columns. The rest are basically useless for most intents and purposes since they were derived via funny equations. The first three columns are: Pressure (in hPa, or millibars), Altitude (in meters), and Temperature (in Celsius). If using or creating a density equation or changing into Standard Units, you should use an Excel spreadsheet or Matlab to add 273 to the Temperature column and to multiply the Pressure column by 100.
For MICROTOPS data:
Find the box on the white bookshelf in the LIDAR room labeled "Solar Light Co." Inside, the MICROTOPS Sun Photometer should be lying in a foam container. Make sure that there are no clouds obscuring the sun, and take the Sun Photometer outside. The directions are on the underside of the Photometer, but just in case:
1) Turn on the Sun Photometer.
2) Once the Photometer has beeped, open the flap at the top of the Photometer.
3) Point the Photometer at the sun. There is a small circle called a "sun spotter" where, if you are pointing the Photometer exactly at the sun, a yellowish white dot should appear. Make sure to aim properly so that the dot is in the very center of the sun target.
4) Press "Scan/Escape" and make sure to keep the white dot in the center of the sun target. Wait until the Photometer beeps, keeping the sun in the center the whole time.
5) Close the flap on the top of the Photometer, go back inside, and take out the Observer Log. Press the right arrow to retrieve the data you have just taken. Specifically for the EARL, you should only need the AOT 500, the W/m^2 500, and the SZA. The AOT is the aerosol optical depth, the W/m^2 is the direct irradiance on a normal surface, and the SZA is the solar zenith angle. If you go to the METAR website and take METAR data every time you take MICROTOPS data, then you should be able to correlate the visibility (the number before "SM," which stands for "Statute Miles") with the AOT.
1) Turn on the Sun Photometer.
2) Once the Photometer has beeped, open the flap at the top of the Photometer.
3) Point the Photometer at the sun. There is a small circle called a "sun spotter" where, if you are pointing the Photometer exactly at the sun, a yellowish white dot should appear. Make sure to aim properly so that the dot is in the very center of the sun target.
4) Press "Scan/Escape" and make sure to keep the white dot in the center of the sun target. Wait until the Photometer beeps, keeping the sun in the center the whole time.
5) Close the flap on the top of the Photometer, go back inside, and take out the Observer Log. Press the right arrow to retrieve the data you have just taken. Specifically for the EARL, you should only need the AOT 500, the W/m^2 500, and the SZA. The AOT is the aerosol optical depth, the W/m^2 is the direct irradiance on a normal surface, and the SZA is the solar zenith angle. If you go to the METAR website and take METAR data every time you take MICROTOPS data, then you should be able to correlate the visibility (the number before "SM," which stands for "Statute Miles") with the AOT.