Week of September 22, 2024 – September 28, 2024
by Elizabeth Suzedell, Environmental Educator
Did you know that we now have a weather station at Baltimore Woods? A weather station is a collection of instruments that measure atmospheric conditions, or more simply, the weather. Our new station was installed earlier this month with the help of our amazing A-team volunteers. As someone who loves the weather, this was a very special project for me to work on, and it has been an exciting way for us to connect with Baltimore Woods in real time!
Our weather station, a Davis Vantage Pro2 model, is mounted to a post by the field near the John A. Weeks Interpretive Center. About 8 feet off the ground, there is a 24-hour fan-aspirated radiation shield housing the temperature and humidity sensors. The fan continuously circulates air over the sensors, and the radiation shield keeps them out of the sun. Above this shelter, there is a tipping spoon rain gauge. When it rains enough, a spoon inside the gauge fills up, tips over, empties its water, and resets- the number of times the spoon tips is used to calculate how much rain fell. Finally, at the very top of the post, there is an anemometer. A needle with a tail like an airplane wing points with the direction of the wind, and cups below it spin as they collect the moving air and measure the wind speed.
There are several exciting ways to utilize our new weather station. Every few seconds, it records data and transmits it online. This means that we can view the weather conditions at The Woods in real-time, which is useful for when you’re deciding on what layers to bring on your hike. Weather stations can also help to make forecasts. Before looking at the computer models, weather forecasters must take time to look at what the current conditions are- this cannot be done without weather stations! After data has been collected, we can look back on it to get some insights about our climate. Knowing the climate trends right here at Baltimore Woods can help inform us about the best times for restoration projects involving plants, and it will also contribute to a network of worldwide climate monitoring.
We are incredibly grateful for our volunteers who helped install the weather station, and for the recent donation that made the purchase of this equipment a reality for our education programs and our community! To see the real-time weather conditions at Baltimore Woods, visit our website at https://baltimorewoods.org/weatherstation/