There are many ways to collect data on the weather. We learned that there are instruments that collect specific measurements about weather. Olyn brought in a few of his personal weather tools for us to observe!
A
rain gauge collects the amount of precipitation and usually is recorded in inches. You can use a ruler to measure the amount of snow accumulation! A
barometer measures the amount of pressure in the air. Low pressure usually means a storm is coming, but high pressure means good weather! The speed of the wind is measured in miles per hour on an
anemometer. We also use the cardinal directions to explain the direction the wind is blowing from. We learned that the wind can make the temperature feel MUCH colder...this is called "wind chill".
A
hygrometer measures the amount of humidity in the air. Humidity is measured in % and tells you how much moisture the air is holding. The higher the humidity %, the more moisture there is in the air. A
thermometer measures the temperature in either degrees Fahrenheit or degrees Celsius.
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| Alex is showing the infrared thermometer on which you can point the laser beam to get an accurate temperature. |
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| Jordan has the complete weather station, with the anemometer ready to capture wind speed! |
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| Olyn is holding his barometer! |
When I teach stand up paddle boarding in the summer I depend a great deal on the weather. When it's windy, like more than 13mph, then people that are new to paddling have a very hard time and it's no fun so I have to study the weather a lot. Also, I stand up paddle in the winter wearing a wetsuit so if there is wind then it makes the air feel much much colder. Yesterday I paddled and it was 43 deg and the winds were about 10-12mph. I wore my wetsuit and booties and went down Mashpee River and since that water is protected and I never fell in I was warm and toasty and got to see lots of beautiful water fowl. Thank you for sharing your weather studies with us. I wonder if I could find an anemometer to put on top of my stand up paddle board to test wind when I'm out paddling?
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