What is a “mesonet”?
A mesonet is a network of automated weather
stations that provides high definition weather
coverage: areas of just a few hundred square
miles and time intervals of several times per
hour. This can be contrasted with the typical
coverage that is thousands of square miles
and hourly. Mesonets excel in providing high
precision data particularly with highly variable
elements like wind and precipitation.
How can my business or organization
sponsor a Mesonet station?
Sponsors play an important role in keeping
the Mesonet running. Coops,
businesses, water authorities, even private
individuals sponsor stations to get data for
agricultural spraying, watershed management
and as a community outreach opportunity.
Contact Us
about sponsoring a new or existing station in your area.
How should rainfall be interpreted?
Mesonet stations use gauges intended
to measure rainfall. In the event of snow, hail or
other frozen/freezing precipitation, underreporting
and delayed reporting can occur. If the current day’s
low temperature is below freezing a warning will
appear next to the reported rainfall to warn of this
possibility.
What is frost depth?
Frost depth is the deepest occurrence of 32° F in the soil profile. Most Mesonet stations report
calculated frost depth from the temperature readings of five sensors at depths of 2, 4, 8, 20 and 40 inches under sod. Note that
4 inch bare soil temperature is not used in the determination of frost depth.
How is pressure is reported?
Mesonet pressure is altimeter (pressure adjusted for elevation). The trend (falling, steady or rising) is three hour.
What is “Feels Like” temperature?
This value combines heat index (temperatures 80° F and higher and relative humidities 40% or higher),
wind chill (temperatures 50° F and lower and wind speeds over 3 mph), and temperature (for all other cases).