Monitoring the State of Watchington

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Monitoring the State of Watchington Kelly
Redmond Western Regional Climate Center Desert
Research Institute Reno Nevada University of
Washington Scoping Workshop June 15, 2007
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So, you wanna run a climate network? A
Checklist Guidelines prepared for CIRMOUNT
Mountain Climate Network, and for NPS Climate
versus Weather Climate measurements require
consistency through time. Network Purpose
Anticipated or desired lifetime. Breadth of
network mission (commitment by needed
constituency). Dedicated constituencyno
network survives without a dedicated
constituency. Site Identification and
Selection Spanning gradients in climate or
biomes with transects. Issues regarding
representative spatial scalesite uniformity
versus site clustering. Alignment with and
contribution to network mission.
Exposureability to measure representative
quantities. Logisticsability to service
station (Always or only in favorable weather?).
Site redundancy (positive for quality control,
negative for extra resources). Poweris AC
needed? Site securityis protection from
vandalism needed? Permitting often a major
impediment and usually underestimated.
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Running a network - 2 Station Hardware
Survivalweather is the main cause of lost
weather/climate data. Robustness of
sensorsability to measure and record in any
condition. Qualitydistrusted records are
worthless and a waste of time and money.
High qualitywill cost up front but pays off
later. Low qualitymay provide a lower
start-up cost but will cost more later (low
cost can be expensive).
Redundancybackup if sensors malfunction.
Ice and snowmeasurements are much more difficult
than rain measurements. Severe environments
(expense is about twothree times greater than
for stations in more benign
settings). Communications Reliabilitylive
data have a much larger constituency.
One-way or two-way. Retrieval of missed
transmissions. Ability to reprogram data
logger remotely. Remote troubleshooting
abilities. Continuing versus one-time
costs. Back-up procedures to prevent data
loss during communication outages. Live
communications increase problems but also
increase value.
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Running a network - 3 Maintenance Main
reason why networks fail (and most networks do
eventually fail!). Key issue with nearly
every network. Who will perform
maintenance? Degree of commitment and
motivation to contribute. Periodic?
On-demand as needed? Preventive? Equipment
change-out schedules and upgrades for sensors and
software. Automated stations require skilled
and experienced labor. Calibrationsensors
often drift (climate). Site maintenance
essential (constant vegetation, surface
conditions, nearby influences).
Typical automated station will cost about 2K per
year to maintain. Documentationphotos,
notes, visits, changes, essential for posterity.
Planning for equipment life cycle and
technological advances. Maintaining Programmatic
Continuity and Corporate Knowledge
Long-term vision and commitment needed.
Institutionalizing versus personalizingdeveloping
appropriate dependencies.
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Running a network - 4 Data Flow
Centralized ingest? Centralized access to
data and data products? Local version
available? Contract out work or do it
yourself? Quality control of data.
Archival. Metadatahistoric information, not
a snapshot. Every station should collect
metadata. Post-collection processing,
multiple data-ingestion paths. Products
Most basic product consists of the data values.
Summaries. Write own applications or
leverage existing mechanisms? Funding
Prototype approaches as proof of concept.
Linking and leveraging essential.
Constituenciesevery network needs a
constituency. Bridging to practical and
operational communities? Live data needed.
Bridging to counterpart research efforts and
initiativesfunding source. Creativity,
resourcefulness, and persistence usually are
essential to success.
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Running a network - 5 Final Comments
Deployment is by far the easiest part in
operating a network. Maintenance is the main
issue. Best analogy Operating a network is
like raising a child it requires constant
attention, and the kid never leaves home.
Source Western Regional Climate Center (WRCC)
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Cooperative network Operator National Weather
Service Archive National Climatic Data Center,
many others Measurement interval Daily Record
length 100 years Manual Max temp, min temp,
precipitation, snowfall, snowdepth Reporting
interval Monthly, many now daily via
Weathercoder and SHEF Purpose General climate
of the United States Approximately 130 stations
if all are reporting. Biased toward where people
live and work, not many at high elevations. Not
in the wettest places. Are in the driest places.
Observation times vary by site and through
history. Record for an observation day. A well
maintained station furnishes an excellent climate
record. Subset called Historical Climate Network
meet standards for longevity, data completeness,
number of station moves. Data quality and
maintenance were not considered in selecting this
network. Overall quality about like the rest.
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Fire Weather Cooperative Network Operator Fire
agencies Archive US Forest Service Measurement
interval Daily Record length Several
decades Manual Max temp, min temp, precipitation,
snowfall, snowdepth, sky state, humidity,
wind Reporting interval Daily, by 1 pm local
time Purpose Assessment of fuel and fire
conditions Once daily readings usually at 1 pm.
Number of stations has greatly reduced because
of growth of RAWS network. Many were in
interesting and unusual locations ranger
stations, fire lookouts, remote locations. Had
humidity and wind. Very bad time for
observations, but needed by 2 pm to calculate
fire danger rating. Generally seasonal, warm
season (fire season). Not much used any more but
these did record for many years.
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RAWS Network Operator multi-agency, primarily
BLM and USFS, other federal and state Archive
Western Regional Climate Center Measurement
interval Hourly Record length earliest about
1983, mostly 1985 onward Automated Temp (was
10-min just before reporting time), relative
humidity, precipitation, wind (usually 20 ft),
solar radiation (varies, instantaneous to
hourly), fuel temperature, some have soil
temperature. Reporting interval Three hourly,
or hourly. Purpose Originally fire, now
becoming more multi-purpose Approximately
1600-2000 sites meeting FPA (Fire Program
Analysis) standards, approximately 2400
altogether. Maintained out of NIFC. Remote
locations, unheated unshielded tipping bucket
precip gages. Can get buried by snow. Some are
turned off over winter but most keep functioning.
One-way GOES transmission. Minimal quality
control, thus far. This will probably be
changing.
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Snotel network Operator National Resources
Conservation Service Archive NRCS Water and
Climate Center, Portland Measurement interval
15 minutes Record length late 1970s / early
1980s to present Automated Instantaneous
temperature every 15 min, snow water equivalent,
snow depth (recently), accumulated water year
precipitation, soil temperature and soil moisture
at some sites Reporting interval Mostly hourly,
some 3 or 6 hourly Purpose Water supply
evaluation and forecasting A rugged all weather
system, designed for heavy snow and rain,
resolution to 0.1 inch, remote and elevated
locations, snow zone up to near or below
timberline. Generally very good measurements.
Site exposure history not always well documented,
or else hard to access. Report via meteorburst,
thus 2-way communication.
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June Lake Snotel.
Sasquatch
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PAWS (Public Agricultural Weather System), Ag
Weather Network Operator WSU Center for
Precision Agricultural Systems, Prosser Archive
WSU Center for Precision Agricultural Systems,
Prosser Measurement interval 15 minutes. Record
length 100 years Automated Temp, precip,
relative humidity, solar radiation, wind (about 2
m), soil moisture, soil temperature (multiple
depths), leaf wetness Reporting interval
Hourly Purpose Agricultural weather and
climate Approximately 59 stations at present.
Stations are in agricultural settings, often near
vegetation, many climate heavily modified.
Sensing at 10 sec intervals, averaged to 15 min,
reported hourly.
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PAWS Standard Weather Station CR10X CR10
datalogger w/CR10WP and 64K RAM ENC 12/14
Enclosure w/mounts (12"x 14") MSX10R Solar
Panel w/regulator HMP35C-L10 Vaisala temp and
RH probe w/10 ft lead 41002-2 12 plate gill
radiation shield LI200S LI-COR silicon
pyranometer LI2003S LI-COR Py. Base and
leveling fixture 03001-5 Wind set RM Young
TE525 Tex. Elec. Rain Gauge (0.01"/TIP) 227
Soil moisture block 237 Wetness sensing grid
105T CU-Const thermocouple w/10 ft lead
10TCRT Thermistor reference for CR10 P50UHF 5
watt UHF transceiver RF95 RF modem Tripod
cross-arm, mounting arm and grnd kit 019ALU
Aluminum Crossarm Sensor mnt 025 Pyranometer
crossarm stand. Battery enclosure 10 ft antenna
cable w/connectors UHF Yagi antenna 70 AHR
battery Padlocks Leaf wetness mounting bracket
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Agrimet network Operator Bureau of
Reclamation Archive Bureau of
Reclamation Measurement interval 15
minutes Record length 1983 (earliest) and
late Automated Temp, precip, wind (2 m), relative
humidity, solar radiation, soil temperature, leaf
wetness, pressure, evaporation at some. Reporting
interval Hourly Purpose Agriculture and
especially water use and irrigation Approximately
70 sites, mostly in Columbia Basin and Pacific
Northwest. Mostly in agricultural settings.
Well maintained, well managed system, with good
quality control.
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ASOS Automated Surface Observing System Operator
National Weather Service, some are FAA, some
DOD Archive National Climatic Data
Center Measurement interval One minute.
Record length Most installed 1994-1996, some
later. Previous hourly data often dates back to
1948 or earlier at most major stations. Automated
Temp, precip, wind (sustained, gust, peak),
dewpoint, pressure, visibility,
ceiling. Reporting interval Hourly, plus each
minute when a special is needed (when weather
meets pre-specified reporting criterion) Purpose
Get a plane down safely. Also used for NWS
forecasting purposes. 967 sites in the USA (28
in WA). Replacement for the old Surface Airways
stations, mostly at airports. Generally high
quality data. ASOS is generally better than
AWOS, and AWOS precipitation is often not present
or not accurate.
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AWOS Automated Weather Observing System Operator
Mostly FAA, some NWS and DOD Archive National
Climatic Data Center Measurement interval One
minute. Record length Most installed
1994-1996, some later. Previous hourly data
often dates back to 1948 or earlier at most major
stations. Automated Temp, precip, wind
(sustained, gust, peak), dewpoint, pressure,
visibility, ceiling. Reporting interval Hourly,
plus each minute when a special is needed (when
weather meets pre-specified reporting
criterion) Purpose Get a plane down safely.
Also used for NWS forecasting purposes. Another
978 stations in the USA (4 in WA), 633 are stored
and archived, 345 are phone modem only, about 3
weeks in the data logger. Replacement for the
old Surface Airways stations, mostly at airports.
Generally high quality data. ASOS is generally
better than AWOS, and AWOS precipitation is often
not present or not accurate.
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MSY
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Climate Reference Network Operator National
Climatic Data Center Archive National Climatic
Data Center Measurement interval 5 min Record
length About 2004 onward Automated Temperature
(3 sensors, aspirated), precipitation (3 wire
Geonor), supportive wind speed (no direction),
wetness sensor, surface skin temperature,
Reporting interval Hourly Purpose Climate
change detection About 115-120 when the final
configuration is laid out. Exceptional attention
to siting and metadata.
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ID Arco 17 SW, Craters of the Moon National
Monument Preserve (Hdq. Area) 43.5 N 113.6 W
5955 July 10, 2003
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AK Barrow 4 ENE, NOAA (CMDL Observatory) 71.3 N
156.6 W 15 July 22, 2002
Non-Commissioned
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WA Darrington 21 NNE, North Cascades National
Park (Marblemount) 48.5 N 121.4 W 376 April
3, 2003
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Soil Climate Analysis Network (SCAN) Operator
USDA Natural Resources Conservation
Service Archive USDA NRCS Water and Climate
Center, Portland Measurement interval
Hourly Record length Mid 1990s and later.
(Lind 1994) Automated Temp, precip, relative
humidity, solar radiation, pressure, wind, soil
moisture and temperature at 2, 4, 8, 20, 40
inches (also salinity and soil real dielectric
constant) Reporting interval Hourly via
meteorburst Purpose Primarily soil moisture,
and the quantities that affect soil
moisture Approximately 120-125 have been
installed. Haphazard, opportunistic, and thus
very uneven station placement, driven by willing
or helpful hosts. Many sites often missing one
or more parameters. Soil moisture is difficult
to keep recalibrating (disturbs the soil).
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Hanford mesonet Operator Hanford Meteorology
Network Archive DOE Hanford Measurement
interval Hourly Record length 1955-current.
Hourly wind at 408 feet since December 7, 1944.
Automated with manual supplements Temperature,
wind, humidity At HMS also sky conditions, sky
cover, pressure, solar radiation,
visibility. Reporting interval Monthly, many
now daily via Weathercoder and SHEF Purpose
Hanford operations, and radiation
movement Approximately 31 stations around the
Hanford nuclear reservation. Approx 1-2 M
annually to keep this functioning.
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Road Weather Information System (RWIS) Operator
usually state and federal departments of
transportation Archive Its never been clear,
and there doesnt seem to be one Measurement
interval hourly or less Record length several
years Automated Temperature, relative humidity,
wind speed and direction, soil or roadway
temperatures Reporting interval Hourly or
less Purpose Road weather conditions on or
near roads and road bed Very fancy and expensive
equipment. Right next to highways. Often are 10
meter towers. Often have web cams. Very poor
metadata and history. Often within splash and
snow throw zone. Many are located on local
highway summits. Very difficult to obtain data,
very poorly documented. OK for weather, not much
value for most climate purposes, except maybe
those relating to wind.
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Data Buoys Operator NOAA Archive National
Data Buoy Center Measurement interval
Hourly Record length 1982 and
later Automated Air temp, water temp, wind,
humidity, wave height, pressure, wave
period Reporting interval Hourly Purpose
Marine conditions Moored buoys. Expensive and
very large and quite stable. There are other
data sets along shore such as Coastal Marine
Automated Network (C-MAN)
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Northern California
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Central California
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Southern California
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Current Stations
RED NWS COOP PURPLE SNOTEL DARK BLUE RAWS
LIGHT BLUE SURFACE AIRWAYS YELLOW MISC
(CURRENTLY CIMIS, CDEC, BUOYS)
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2005 August 11 1700 GMT
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Whale Point (600 ft) and Highlands Peak (2500
ft), Big Sur. 2 miles apart.
Whale Point 600 ft
Highlands Peak 2500 ft
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Whale Point, Big Sur, 600 ft, 10-min Temperature,
July 2006 Heat Wave.
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Highlands Pk, Big Sur, 2470 ft, 10-min
Temperature, July 2006 Heat Wave.
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South Central Sierra Snow Lab
East 6883 ft / 2098 m
Photo Dave Simeral
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Slide Mountain, Lake Tahoe Basin, 9650 ft.
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Slide Mountain Toward SSW
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Slide Mountain Toward ESE
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Slide Mountain Toward NW
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Slide Mountain Toward South
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Operations? or testing ? Ice Wind Imbalance
Shaking Clouds Battery Discharge Persiste
nce Interesting data
Ward Peak. Lake Tahoe Basin. 8600 feet.
Photo Arlen Huggins
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ACIS Applied Climate Information System ACIS
Web page rcc-acis.org
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Brochure at http//www.srcc.lsu.edu/BrochureScreen
(Screen Version) 7MB http//www.srcc.lsu.edu/Br
ochurePrint (Print Version) 20MB
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Brochure at http//www.srcc.lsu.edu/BrochureScreen
(Screen Version) 7MB http//www.srcc.lsu.edu/Br
ochurePrint (Print Version) 20MB
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Stations

• Stations selected by NCDC with NWS input
• 1,000 HCN stations
• Expansion capability to collect other
  measurements (e.g., NIDIS soil moisture, snowfall
  snow depth, etc.)

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System Architecture
Raw Data
HCN-M Platform
Raw Data
Central Data Processing
Processed Data
Climate Post- Processing Archive
Metadata
MADIS
Coordination
Processed Data
Metadata
Processed Data
Site Maint.
OM
User Community
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System ArchitectureCRN Connection

• HCN-M leverages CRN in these aspects
• Equipment standards
• Instrumentation
• Software and algorithms
• Siting standards
• Metadata standards
• Calibration standards
• Documents and plan
• Lessons learned

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Resources - Budget

• Current Status
• FY07 funding is 4.2M for execution by NWS
• FY08 and beyond still in NOAA planning stages
• 100 program plan funding (6.7M) will complete
  HCN-M in FY13.
• If budget flat-lines at current 4.2M,
  significant delays in completion occur.

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Resources - Staff

• Staff being assembled
• 3 NOAA FTEs 8-10 contractors
• interviewing for HCN-M Program Manager soon
• filling contractor positions/needs periodically

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Resource Requirements
Cost per HCN modernized station Program
Management 2K Site Preparation and
Installation 8K
Hardware/Calibration/Spares/Supplies
19K IT (Communications/data processing)
6K OM 3K Average
Costs per station 38K
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Objectives

• Enable continued monitoring and assessment of
  regional climate variability
• Sustain the historical climate record
• Provide climate observational data and metadata
• Improve data quality and availability
• Distribute data to customers for current and
  future use
• Integrate with NOAAs Global Earth Observing
  Integrated Data Environment (GEO-IDE)
• Plan and program resources to complete Project by
  FY13 (i.e., complete 1000 sites)

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Food for thought With complicated topography, we
can never have enough stations Therefore, what is
the most judicious placement of
stations? Redundancy is bad, costs
resources. Redundancy is good, helps QC and data
credibility. Current quality control of daily
data. Very difficult in western terrain.
Estimate nationwide by Ken Hubbard of HPRCC is
that 60 percent of all daily coop data edits are
Type I errors (good data are judged to be bad).
More mistakes introduced than fixed. Quality
control Best bang for the buck is to produce
high quality data right out of the starting
gate, rather than fix the data later on
downstream. Consider working toward an SC-ACIS.
State Climatologist Applied Climate Information
System. In complex terrain, at what point are we
willing to consider ground truth as being in
gridded form just as well as in station form?
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Combining networks for a de facto mesonet Local
versus central needs Locally perceived and
defined needs, and funding More often funding is
mainly for deployment Not often the luxury of
identifying maintenance source (deployment
becomes deplorement) Centrally perceived and
defined needs What is the incremental value of a
station to a system ? A very common problem,
nobody has solved it. Value may occur from
contribution to a grid (eg, forecast
initialization) Hard to quantify value, if it
clearly exists Forecast and modeling grids are
getting finer and finer This drives up the
need for fine scale ground truth Biggest issue
how to apportion costs when benefits are
distributed Station benefits provided to, and
received from, other communities
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Network X as a contributor to a network of
networks In the face of a continual push toward
more fine scale information demand How can we
edge toward greater coordination of station
networks? Joining with other networks
ASOS, AWOS, Snotel, Coop Modernization, RAWS,
special mesonets Have broached this with
other agencies, such as USDA Snotel A
national mesonet consortium ? Cost /
benefit assessments have difficult time with
whole-system analysis Leveraging of assets and
activities across federal agencies Different
missions and justification processes Whos
looking at the big picture ? Value of a tree
(station) vs. Value of a forest (network)
Different species of trees, too. (Different
agencies) Full quantification impossible expert
judgment and intuition are essential Logical
venue to work these issues out? Grass roots, to
start with. Has never been dealt with from the
top.
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Thank You.