Weather Monitoring Spotlight


from a raingauge network (BS 7843-1:2012) was chaired by the Environment Agency’s Dave Stewart, who was also involved in the trial to evaluate the Pluvio2


. Dave says: “BS7843 includes


raingauges that operate on the weighing principle and it is likely that the new European CEN standard that is currently being developed will incorporate the content of the British Standard.”


OTT Pluvio2 Trials


The objectives of the trials were as follows: • to compare performance against existing technology


• to test the equipment as a potential low maintenance raingauge in remote areas that will allow reduced frequency of site visits compared to existing practice for TBRs


• to investigate the instrument accuracy and reliability to allow its operation without the need for a comparison gauge e.g. a monthly check gauge


• to assess its performance in the measurement of solid precipitation


The trial was undertaken at sites in both Scotland and North Wales. An observer-read daily raingauge was the reference for


OTT Reading RG the daily rainfall total. The Pluvio2


19 performance was measured by


its deviation from the observer-read daily gauge over periods of one month and the target was for this deviation not to exceed 10% (SEPA) and 8% (EA). These data were quality controlled by the Met Office.


Results and Conclusions The Pluvio2


passed the success criteria at both trials, showing a


very close relationship with the storage daily reference raingauge over the period of both trials. The Pluvio2


also outperformed all


of the TBRs in the trial during snowfall events. Over 100 Pluvio2


raingauges have now been purchased by the


EA with further purchases planned for the near future. Dave Stewart has been responsible for the implementation of Pluvio2 into the EA’s network and says “Initial results look promising; the Pluvio2


is proving to be very reliable, so we have been able to


reduce the frequency with which we have to make site visits. This is particularly advantageous with remote sites where we are making considerable savings in time and travel; payback periods vary from almost immediate, up to several years.”


Further information is available at www.ott-hydrometry.co.uk


New Advanced Weather Station


The WS-GP2 is a new weather station from Delta- T Devices (UK). The system is based on the advanced GP2 Data Logger which has the power and flexibility to handle almost any environmental sensor. Users are able to select the optimal combination of sensors, logger, power source and communications.


The WS-GP2 Weather Station is designed for use in severe weather conditions at remote and exposed sites. The standard system comes complete with high quality sensors to measure rain, solar radiation, wind speed and direction, soil temperature, relative humidity and air temperature. Optional additional sensors include barometric pressure, soil moisture (including soil profiles), soil EC, UV, PAR, albedo, net radiation, total and diffuse radiation, evaporation and surface wetness.


The weather station can be as simple or as complex as your application requires. Even after installation, it’s easy to expand or adapt the system – by adding additional sensors or solar power, for example. Data can be collected by laptop via USB, or remotely using the reliable GSM modem options. DeltaLINK Software makes it easy to set up recording intervals and to view and download stored data. Data presentation options include wind rose, gusts and average (including direction and vector average).


For applications where the weather data is required for modelling, the built-in Script Editor makes complex tasks much simpler. Researchers can write scripts to calculate day-degrees or to model parameters such as evapo-transpiration.


The WS-GP2 software also includes a logging Simulator. This unique feature enables users to test a program before “going live” with the experiment. The Simulator provides valuable confirmation that data will be generated as intended, and also checks whether the control logic and scripted actions are responding to environmental changes as expected.


The sophistication of the WS-GP2’s software tools make it much more than just an easy to use and reliable weather station; it can be a platform for innovative data collection, data processing and modelling techniques.


26662pr@reply-direct.com For More Info, email:


New Present Weather Sensor Provide Exceptional Value for Money


The CS125 Present Weather Sensor from Campbell Scientific (UK) is designed to meet the budgetary requirements for instrumented present weather monitoring for road weather, aviation, marine and wind energy applications. However, with its high end specification, the CS125 offers outstanding value for money.


The sensor uses the well-established forward scatter system for visibility measurement, utilising a 42° scatter angle which gives accurate estimates of Meteorological Observable Range (M.O.R.) for fog and snow with a maximum reported visibility of 32 km. The CS125 can distinguish and report up to 25 separate present weather codes (SYNOP) whereas many other lower cost PWS devices typically offer a handful of present weather codes.


The sensor is designed so that the measurement volume is relatively undisturbed by the mounting and electronics enclosure and also to have a high immunity to the visible and infra-red warning lights often used in the environments the sensor will typically be deployed in.


The sensor will operate reliably within a temperature range of -25°C to +60°C with an option for an extended range if required, with a relative humidity range of 0-100%.


Two user-configurable alarms are provided with RS232/RS485 or logic level outputs. 26896pr@reply-direct.com


For More Info, email:


email: 427ad@reply-direct.com www.envirotech-online.com IET September / October 2013


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