Attended the Open House at the regional Northern Michigan NWS office in Gaylord, Michigan today. (KAPX)
It was very interesting and the staff was friendly and helpful. I had a good time. Here are some pics.
WSR88D Tower
Vintage Weather Equipment
Alter Screen (rain gauges are not visible)
Sensors (Met One aspirators running)
The tinsel ball is for static charge dispersal, the gray cylinder is a satellite upload antenna.
More Sensors with Davis VP2
There was a Judd snow depth sensor on this array.
I didn't get pictures of the indoor tour, but I noticed that they use NLDN for lightning detection. It was depicting + and - strikes. They had the usual array of satellite, radar images, etc. and were showing how they generate forecasts. It is more automated than I would have guessed.
I had a great day out there and was glad that I attended.
Greg H.