The Nebraska Mesonet ! "#$%"&'%( )'* + ,&- - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

The Nebraska Mesonet ! "#$%"&'%( )'* + ,&- ./#"'* "&'$"$.&0)+ ! "$1)12+ '$&"- 3&"''10+ "$.&4 #15.''1# 6789:;8<=>

The Nebraska State Climate Office !"#$%&!'%()& MISSION Deliver science-based weather and climate information for decision-making. OBJECTIVES ! Provide high quality and timely services. ! Engage stakeholders to understand needs. ! Operate a statewide weather network. * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 + * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

The Nebraska Mesonet 9("$!(:%&!'%()& MISSION Monitor weather and climate conditions of Nebraska. NEBRASKA MESONET History A T T H E N E B R A S K A S T A T E C L I M A T E O F F I C E ! Began in 1981 with 5 stations. ! Currently at 69 stations. ! Transition from ag network Transition from ag network to long-standing environmental monitoring GOTHENBURG 2NW SMOUTH 2SE program. NEBRASKA CITY 3NW A CITY 3NW MICRONET * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

;<=("13(!:(> Observations ! Air temperature (2m) ! Humidity (2m) ! Wind speed (3m) ! Wind direction (3m) ! Warm season precipitation ! Solar radiation ! Soil temperature 10cm, bare ground * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

Observations *$>:?1@'<::( ! Air temperature (2m) ! Humidity (2m) ! Wind speed (3m) ! Wind direction (3m) ! Warm season precipitation ! Solar radiation ! Soil temperature 10cm, bare ground ! Soil moisture 10, 25, 50, 100 cm, grass ! Barometric pressure * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

4A!#$'! +<":1#<9B&" Observations ! Air temperature (2m) ! Humidity (2m) ! Wind speed (3m) ! Wind direction (3m) ! Warm season precipitation ! Solar radiation ! Soil temperature 10cm, bare ground ! Soil moisture, temp 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 cm, grass ! Barometric pressure ! 10-m temperature, * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 + humidity, wind

6(9B?A"1 C* Station siting Considerations ! Rural ! Grass cover ! Limited obstructions ! Long-term ! Non-irrigated * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

Value of a state Mesonet ! State of the art equipment (Campbell Scientific, Li-Cor, RM Young). ! Regular calibration services. ! Annual maintenance. Sensor upgrades as needed. ! Quality controlled data. ! Near real-time available (every 5 minutes, transitioning to 1 minute). ! Data products available. ! Non-mesonet dataset visualization. * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

Soil moisture monitoring genesis Goal : improved water supply monitoring for drought mitigation ! Installation began in 1998 with Stevens-Vitel Hydra-Probe. ! Depths of 10cm, 25cm, 50cm, 100cm. ! U.S. Bureau of Reclamation grant funding. ! Reliability of Vitel sensors became an issue. !"#$%&'%()$*+,-.(/0&.*$12(34()$*+,-.(5*60.*$ * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 + * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

Soil moisture monitoring developments ! Transition to Dynamax ML2x Theta Probes in 2001. ! Many still in place, running successfully for > 10 years. ! To align with federal standards, observing depths for all new installations are: 5cm,10cm, 20cm, 50cm, 100cm. ! Current sensor is the ML3. * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

Soil moisture data integrity issues When bad things happen to good data: ! Sensor goes bad. ! Wire is chewed. ! Crack in the soil column. ! Sensor is dug up. ! Animal burrow. ! Lightning strike. The two best forms of quality control are: ! Regular site visits. ! A person looking at the data. * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

Soil moisture data integrity issues Soil moisture data integrity issues * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 + * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

Soil moisture data products * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

Data utility - applications ! Assess drought conditions with local input. ! State agency briefings. ! Hydrologic support. * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

Data utility - research ! Land-surface – atmosphere interactions. ! Mesoscale weather modeling. ! Drought assessment. ! Model and remote sensed verification. ! Vadose zone hydrology. * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +

Climate updates * + , - . / 0 . 1/ 2. 2 + 13 4 5 6 .2 + 17 8 8 5 3 +