My Station

This weather station is an Ambientweather WS-5000. It is a highly accurate station and it is Ambientweather’s best option for overall accuracy. The station features precise temperature, humidity, pressure, wind speed and wind gust, and solar radiation (uv) readings. The anemometer (wind sensor) uses new ultrasonic technology to provide the most precise wind data, and it does not have any moving parts. Another advantage of this station is it is considered accurate enough to register with the NWS through the CWOP (Citizen Weather Observation Program). This ensures the data is reliable and accurate, and also allows the NWS to use the data. This is extremely helpful for the Matanuska Valley due to our many microclimates where our weather, and especially our wind events are highly location dependent. This station will be filling a valuable gap as there aren’t many other stations with reliable data in my area. When you buy a weather station, it is best to place it in an area that is open and high off the ground for the best wind readings. The NWS recommends when mounting one, the station should be 10 meters off the ground, and a distance equal to 4 times the height of the tallest nearby object. (ex. if the tallest nearby object is a 50 ft. tall tree, the station should be mounted 200 ft. away from it). Of course, this is ideal and most weather station owners cannot meet these requirements which gives inaccurate wind readings. My yard cannot fulfill these requirements either, but I have found a solution. Lisa, the owner of Twinkle Toes in my neighborhood, has kindly allowed me to mount the weather station on the shop/house on her property. The station is mounted roughly 30 ft up, in an open area without many nearby trees making it the perfect mounting spot. Below is a photo of the station and the location.