Weather Stations
Vineyards
Climate is clearly one of the most important factors in the success of wine grapes grown in a given region, largely controlling crop productivity and quality, and ultimately driving economic sustainability. Solar radiation, average temperatures, temperature extremes, heat accumulation, diurnal temperatures during ripening, wind, precipitation, humidity, and soil-water balance all play an important role in the grape growing process. So why not measure these parameters in your vineyard? A weather station from Western Weather Group provides information on all of the important factors. A weather station will also provide frost and heat alarms, growing degree-days, the grape powdery mildew index as well as a historical record of the weather to compare vintage years. Great wines begin in the vineyard and monitoring the weather plays a major factor in vineyard management operations.
Orchards
Mild, radiation frosts occur on still, clear nights, usually with the development of a strong inversion. As cold air drains into low spots or in areas where drainage is blocked, temperatures can be much colder than other areas throughout the orchard. Under these conditions, a few degrees of frost protection may be all that’s needed and it can be provided by running water, flying helicopters, or by operating wind machines in narrow valleys. To know when to initiate frost protection you first need to know what the temperatures are in your orchard. A weather station will provide frost alerts (text and/or phone call), reference evapotranspiration values for irrigation scheduling, chill hours and chill units, bee hours, growing degree-days and other agronomic information to make informed decisions in the orchard.
Field Crops
Automated weather stations that generate real-time and historical data are a necessary management tool to make crop decisions. Reference evapotranspiration values generated by the weather station will provide the essential information regarding irrigation scheduling, saving water and electricity. Measurements of temperature, soil moisture, humidity, winds, leaf wetness, water flow, well depth and other parameters can all be measured by the weather station datalogger. The data, transmitted via cellular modem, are available in real-time on your mobile devices.
THE WESTERN WEATHER GROUP ADVANTAGE
We specialize in industrial grade meteorological and environmental monitoring systems. We are an authorized Value Added Reseller for Campbell Scientifics' measurement and control products which are renowned for long-term monitoring and precision measurements. Our instrumentation services include system design, sales, installation, calibration, technical support and data management.
Utilities
Western Weather Group works with utility companies to help them monitor the weather in their service area to prevent a disaster such as downed power lines due to high winds. Wind, temperature, humidity, solar data, as well as fuel moisture and fuel temperature are all key parameters that can be measured by a weather station. Data are transmitted every 10 minutes to a control center for action to be taken when and if necessary. Alerts can be sent out immediately by the weather station or the Western Weather Group cloud based data services when a specified threshold is exceeded. The real-time data will provide meteorologists and operation managers the information they need to make accurate and timely decisions.
Industrial
Oil refineries, water treatment plants, chemical manufacturers and other high end industrial facilities have an important need to know the local weather conditions in case of a toxic spill or natural hazard. Having instantaneous wind speed and direction measurements at a critical time is invaluable. Local wind information will also be important should neighbors complain about drifting odors from a facility. The industrial grade weather stations from Western Weather Group meet the EPA guidelines for monitoring primary meteorological variables (wind direction, wind speed, temperature, humidity, pressure and radiation). These data can then be used in air quality modeling and computing variables such as stability, mixing height and turbulence.
Recreation
The ski industry might be the biggest business dependent on the weather. From snow making and avalanche control to clearing the parking lots and personnel management, ski resorts are weather dependent. Too much or too little snow is a management issue. The weather stations sold by Western Weather Group utilize Campbell Scientific dataloggers. These multipurpose rugged dataloggers have an operating temperature range of -40° to +70°C enabling them to perform in remote, unattended locations, with minimal battery power. The wind sensors used by Western Weather Group in harsh alpine conditions are designed to prevent ice buildup, have heavy duty bearings for long term deployment and an operating range down to -50°C. Each weather station is custom built for the location and purpose required by the end user.
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530.342.1700
We work closely with each client to understand their needs and then design a system that will meet their specifications.
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