AWS were a great step forward in weather observing but they have an Achilles
heel: they sometimes malfunction, and it’s not any Tom, Dick or Harry who
can fix them. For example just when we’re having an inordinate amount of
rainfall and we’re interested in knowing just how much, the rainfall sensors
of Aboyne and Shoeburyness have gone u/s – and those are just the two I’ve
noticed. I can’t see them getting fixed in a hurry.
Here, on the other hand, some poor devil will be standing in a waterlogged
field in his wellies, trying to make his ball-point write on soggy paper –
but it will get done, and will probably be the only rainfall record the MO
will get in this rural part of Aberdeenshire.

Ian Bingham,
Inchmarlo, Aberdeenshire.
80m asl.

Ian Bingham wrote:
AWS were a great step forward in weather observing but they have an
Achilles heel: they sometimes malfunction, and it’s not any Tom, Dick or
Harry who can fix them. For example just when we’re having an
inordinate amount of rainfall and we’re interested in knowing just how
much, the rainfall sensors of Aboyne and Shoeburyness have gone u/s –
and those are just the two I’ve noticed. I can’t see them getting fixed
in a hurry.
Here, on the other hand, some poor devil will be standing in a
waterlogged field in his wellies, trying to make his ball-point write on
soggy paper – but it will get done, and will probably be the only
rainfall record the MO will get in this rural part of Aberdeenshire.

Ian Bingham,
Inchmarlo, Aberdeenshire.
80m asl.
---------------------------------
On the plus side there will be lots of reasonably accurate amateur AWS's
at or near to Shoeburyness, accessible via the web, and so data can
still be found, which wouldn't have been possible before.
Dave

"Dave Cornwell" wrote in message
...
Ian Bingham wrote:
AWS were a great step forward in weather observing but they have an
Achilles heel: they sometimes malfunction, and it’s not any Tom, Dick or
Harry who can fix them. For example just when we’re having an inordinate
amount of rainfall and we’re interested in knowing just how much, the
rainfall sensors of Aboyne and Shoeburyness have gone u/s – and those are
just the two I’ve noticed. I can’t see them getting fixed in a hurry.
Here, on the other hand, some poor devil will be standing in a
waterlogged field in his wellies, trying to make his ball-point write on
soggy paper – but it will get done, and will probably be the only
rainfall record the MO will get in this rural part of Aberdeenshire.

Ian Bingham,
Inchmarlo, Aberdeenshire.
80m asl.
---------------------------------
On the plus side there will be lots of reasonably accurate amateur AWS's
at or near to Shoeburyness, accessible via the web, and so data can still
be found, which wouldn't have been possible before.
Dave

wow.metoffice.gov.uk

Will
--

Eskimo Will wrote:

"Dave Cornwell" wrote in message
...
Ian Bingham wrote:
AWS were a great step forward in weather observing but they have an
Achilles heel: they sometimes malfunction, and it’s not any Tom, Dick
or Harry who can fix them. For example just when we’re having an
inordinate amount of rainfall and we’re interested in knowing just
how much, the rainfall sensors of Aboyne and Shoeburyness have gone
u/s – and those are just the two I’ve noticed. I can’t see them
getting fixed in a hurry.
Here, on the other hand, some poor devil will be standing in a
waterlogged field in his wellies, trying to make his ball-point write
on soggy paper – but it will get done, and will probably be the only
rainfall record the MO will get in this rural part of Aberdeenshire.

Ian Bingham,
Inchmarlo, Aberdeenshire.
80m asl.
---------------------------------
On the plus side there will be lots of reasonably accurate amateur
AWS's at or near to Shoeburyness, accessible via the web, and so data
can still be found, which wouldn't have been possible before.
Dave

wow.metoffice.gov.uk

Will
--

-----------------------
Exactly - I'm on there :-)

In article ,
says...

Eskimo Will wrote:

"Dave Cornwell" wrote in message
...
Ian Bingham wrote:
AWS were a great step forward in weather observing but they have an
Achilles heel: they sometimes malfunction, and it?s not any Tom, Dick
or Harry who can fix them. For example just when we?re having an
inordinate amount of rainfall and we?re interested in knowing just
how much, the rainfall sensors of Aboyne and Shoeburyness have gone
u/s ? and those are just the two I?ve noticed. I can?t see them
getting fixed in a hurry.
Here, on the other hand, some poor devil will be standing in a
waterlogged field in his wellies, trying to make his ball-point write
on soggy paper ? but it will get done, and will probably be the only
rainfall record the MO will get in this rural part of Aberdeenshire.

Ian Bingham,
Inchmarlo, Aberdeenshire.
80m asl.
---------------------------------
On the plus side there will be lots of reasonably accurate amateur
AWS's at or near to Shoeburyness, accessible via the web, and so data
can still be found, which wouldn't have been possible before.
Dave

wow.metoffice.gov.uk

Will
--

-----------------------
Exactly - I'm on there :-)

Ditto

http://wow.metoffice.gov.uk/latestob...iteID=16937321

On Saturday, December 22, 2012 12:45:57 PM UTC, wrote:
"Dave Cornwell" wrote in message

...

Ian Bingham wrote:

AWS were a great step forward in weather observing but they have an

Achilles heel: they sometimes malfunction, and it’s not any Tom, Dick or

Harry who can fix them. For example just when we’re having an inordinate

amount of rainfall and we’re interested in knowing just how much, the

rainfall sensors of Aboyne and Shoeburyness have gone u/s – and those are

just the two I’ve noticed. I can’t see them getting fixed in a hurry.

Here, on the other hand, some poor devil will be standing in a

waterlogged field in his wellies, trying to make his ball-point write on

soggy paper – but it will get done, and will probably be the only

rainfall record the MO will get in this rural part of Aberdeenshire.



Ian Bingham,

Inchmarlo, Aberdeenshire.

80m asl.

---------------------------------

On the plus side there will be lots of reasonably accurate amateur AWS's

at or near to Shoeburyness, accessible via the web, and so data can still

be found, which wouldn't have been possible before.

Dave



wow.metoffice.gov.uk



Will

--

I haven't used WOW before but I see it gives "rainfall rate/hr" rather than amount so not much good really.

On Saturday, December 22, 2012 10:23:56 AM UTC, Ian Bingham wrote:
AWS were a great step forward in weather observing but they have an Achilles

heel: they sometimes malfunction, and it’s not any Tom, Dick or Harry who

can fix them. For example just when we’re having an inordinate amount of

rainfall and we’re interested in knowing just how much, the rainfall sensors

of Aboyne and Shoeburyness have gone u/s – and those are just the two I’ve

noticed. I can’t see them getting fixed in a hurry.

Here, on the other hand, some poor devil will be standing in a waterlogged

field in his wellies, trying to make his ball-point write on soggy paper –

but it will get done, and will probably be the only rainfall record the MO

will get in this rural part of Aberdeenshire.



Ian Bingham,

Inchmarlo, Aberdeenshire.

80m asl.

Trouble is that these amateur stations' figures, no matter how accurate and how interesting to us, will never be accepted by the MO.
The result is that "official" statistics get more and more incomplete and inaccurate as the personal touch disappears. I live a couple of miles from the Filton station.It is often impossible to believe that the weather there is so different from what it is here.