Topic: NOAA CWOP MADIS ?

[Cienega32]

I'm seeing a few WU sites in my area as MADIS sites lately. Is this part of of CWOP or NOAA or are they all the same or what? I'm a little lost...

I never thought about it but I think I would like to get onboard before I'm the only local PWS that isn't! Mainly to be part of 'the bigger picture' so to speak.

The way I read it is I just submit a few lines of info to CWOP, they send me a CWnnnn ID. Am I then registered with NOAA or is that another process?

Is this MADIS another part of the CWOP? How do I get onboard that one - just by joining the CWOP and ARPSWXNET?


I don't know if I'm just confusing my self (easy to do right before the NFL playoffs) or I'm just getting too old to think...

[wmiler]

The way I read it is I just submit a few lines of info to CWOP, they send me a CWnnnn ID. Am I then registered with NOAA or is that another process?

Is this MADIS another part of the CWOP? How do I get onboard that one - just by joining the CWOP and ARPSWXNET?

If you join CWOP and send them your data, they will automagically send your data on into the NOAA MADIS system. As a bonus feature, you can get reports back that will tell you how accurate your station is compared to a) everybody else, and b) to their group of control sites.

No additional registering is required, unless you want to send data to places like weatherforyou.com and related places.

[Cienega32]

Wow - that was quick!

I somehow thought it was that way but, quite honestly, after reading thru a few links, I got mentally lost. It's tough when you're a Giants fan...

Great! Now I have something to do this weekend. Thanks for the info.

EDIT: That was quite painless. I'm in the CWOP! Woo Hoo!

[dmevis]

Actually, I believe there is one additional step.

Once you are sending your weather data, the data is "ingested" by NOAA and subject to "quality" checks by MADIS.  However, you do not automatically received reports of problems with your data/site unless you also sign up to get those reports. 

[TNETWeather]

I wish whoever CW2017 is would fix their station... It makes the rest in the area look bad.  Its got the wrong altitude and its dewpt is off by about 53°F on a constant basis.

http://weather.gladstonefamily.net/site/C2017

Site   Distance         Location   Barometer   Temperature   Dewpoint
NU7B   2.8 miles   Southwest       Tempe, AZ US (lat 33.3728°, long -111.9160°, altitude 363 meters)    1.1mb   0.4°F   1.4°F
CW6490   4.6 miles   Southeast       Gilbert, AZ US (lat 33.3720°, long -111.8117°, altitude 371 meters)    0.2mb   0.1°F   0.5°F
CW6682   4.8 miles   East       Mesa, AZ US (lat 33.4275°, long -111.8050°, altitude 425 meters)    1.2mb   -4.7°F   0.3°F
KPHX   7.7 miles   West       Phoenix/sky Harb, AZ (lat 33.4343°, long -112.0116°, altitude 337 meters)    0.3mb   -1.9°F   3.8°F
CW2014   7.9 miles   East       Mesa, AZ US (lat 33.4263°, long -111.7487°, altitude 402 meters)    -0.2mb   -2.8°F   2.6°F
CW4192   8.8 miles   Northwest       Phoenix, AZ US (lat 33.4990°, long -111.9817°, altitude 366 meters)    1.8mb      
KFFZ   9.8 miles   Northeast       Falcon Fld Mesa, AZ (lat 33.4608°, long -111.7283°, altitude 424 meters)    -0.2mb   -4.0°F   7.1°F
KCHD   10.1 miles   Southeast       Chandler Airport, AZ (lat 33.2691°, long -111.8111°, altitude 379 meters)    -0.1mb   -0.4°F   1.3°F
CW2017   10.1 miles   East       Mesa, AZ US (lat 33.3845°, long -111.7090°, altitude 500 meters)    0.7mb   -3.8°F   56.8°F
CW7918   13.2 miles   Southeast       Gilbert, AZ US (lat 33.2605°, long -111.7313°, altitude 400 meters)    0.9mb   0.9°F   0.7°F

[Cienega32]

Actually, I believe there is one additional step.

Once you are sending your weather data, the data is "ingested" by NOAA and subject to "quality" checks by MADIS.  However, you do not automatically received reports of problems with your data/site unless you also sign up to get those reports. 

I've been checking the CWOP for the MADIS ratings today (the update day) and see I now have 2 thumbs up thru-out the page (C9386). That's good to know as there was 1 or 2 stations in the area that seemed like they just tagged in generic numbers for things like altitude. There was one last year that was 600 ft higher than mine. His location was downhill...

I checked my altitude thru my Topo software and a GPS unit and they both jived for me. The CWOP page says I'm pretty close (I think I was on a ladder haha). It's all pretty cool - the siting is actually only about 10 or 15 feet from where it is on their mapping.

Now I want to see the MADIS comment on Weather Underground like the other stations I see.

This is my first winter with a PWS so I'm having "fun" watching the temps dive at nite (10F in the desert is cold) with the wind chill but I'm watching the summary all time. I'll sign-up for the data snag reports soon. Next step is to Dremel off the handle of my Walmart strainer aka rain gauge debris collector.

[jmcmurry]

I wish whoever CW2017 is would fix their station... It makes the rest in the area look bad.  Its got the wrong altitude and its dewpt is off by about 53°F on a constant basis.

Kevin,

If you go to http://www.wxqa.com/cgi-bin/search1.cgi?keyword=CW2017 you'll find an EMail address so perhaps you can contact and help him/her out.  Seems to be running WD too.

- Jim

[CW2017]

My dewpoint WAS off due to a faulty humidity sensor. 

I think you are being a little dramatic by saying "He makes the rest of us look bad"...  Surely you can find other things to complain about.

And for your information, my altitude is exact.  500 meters.  Its called a tower.

kthxbai.

[SoMDWx]

Unfortunately a single site CAN draw the numbers away from the norm.. Usually, persistent bad data will be tossed and not used in the anaylsis...

Jim

[WeatherGoose]

Unfortunately a single site CAN draw the numbers away from the norm.. Usually, persistent bad data will be tossed and not used in the anaylsis...

Jim

Exactly!  Eventually a station that has gone "SOUTH" will be removed from the database, but in the meantime it does tend to pollute that data for the area it is in.

Even Wunderground will eventually remove a problem station, and if the PWS owner lets it get that bad as to cause removal to happen, good luck getting Wunderground to allow it back on their site even after the problems have been corrected. 

For Cienega32...

Once you get hooked up with MADIS, you can also track your station data through MESOWEST, which is in partnership with the MADIS program and provides their own error checking and history database for MADIS stations.

Here is the link to my MESOWEST page so you can see what kind of stats they provide.

http://mesowest.utah.edu/cgi-bin/droman/meso_base.cgi?stn=d2149

[Cienega32]

Thanks 'Goose. I signed on to CWOP the day after I started this thread and have been in MesoWest since 01-02-08 - a few days after signing on to CWOP - CW9386.


I have a similar station about 40 miles away that has some bad numbers as well. +16.4mb and +76.4F on Dew Point! There used to be one like that closer to my location but it never hampered my "double-thumbs-up".

[DanS]

My dewpoint WAS off due to a faulty humidity sensor.  

I think you are being a little dramatic by saying "He makes the rest of us look bad"...  Surely you can find other things to complain about.

And for your information, my altitude is exact.  500 meters.  Its called a tower.

kthxbai.

kthxbai, what kind of wx station are you running? Is the barometer inside a tower mounted sensor?  Usually they are inside the console in the home. Just curious to know if there are stations in use here with outside barometers.

Also, if your troubled humidity sensor has one of these inside you may be able to save it.
thanks

[Cienega32]

kthxbai, what kind of wx station are you running? Is the barometer inside a tower mounted sensor?  Usually they are inside the console in the home. Just curious to know if there are stations in use here with outside barometers.

The elevation is meant to reflect that of the barometer, correct?

I made that mistake when I first sited my station - I used the elevation of the ISS which is about 8' above the ground for right now. I show an 8 foot difference from the CWOP stats for my location and I've gotten so used to "4474 feet" that I forget about it.

I used a GPS to get my elevation and, with that 8' in mind, it's pretty close!

[tomcj2]

I have 3 Garmin GPS's.  They all show different elevations.  I have found Google Earth to be most accurate.

[George Richardson]

This:[ http://www.starpath.com/barometers/baro_cal.php ] is the best elevation finder I have seen. Just enter your Latitude and Longitude in the left panel and click "Find your station elevation" in the right panel and you've got it (ground level elevation and you will have to add height above ground to your station.)
FWIW
George

[Petaris]

So when WeatherUnderground asks for your MADIS ID is it the CW/DWxxxx number?

Thanks,

Petaris

[jmcmurry]

Petaris,

Yes, that it.  That is so they don't show your data twice under both their id and the CWOP id.

- Jim

[merlinwx]

I have a somewhat related question--Under the temp data graph on the CWOP "thumb up/down" page, the following message is posted for my station:
 
"It appears that your station is sited near the edge of a large urban area. This
causes the analysis values to be lowered than expected as the quality control
system does not take the location of the urban area into account"
 
Who or what generates this message?  Doesn't make sense to me since the sensor
is at least 15 miles away from and 3000' above the nearest town and I'd hardly
call the nearest small town a "large urban area".

[PaulMy]

merlinwx
From zooming in from your CWOP location pointer, doesn't look like too urban there .  I don't have an answer to your question and perhaps your collective data has the characteristics similar of large urban area in order to display that message.  Your MADIS rating shows 84% and all data rating is green checkmark and 2-thums.  Like many others, one learns to ignore some of those ratings because the comparison(s) are either too far away or not reliable.

Quite a location for your ISS!  You do what you have to

Paul

[merlinwx]

Thanks  Paul.  Fortunately, there is another VP2 station (not reporting) less than a mile from me.  Our temps are tracking within about .5 degrees so I don't worry about the analysis that much...I think I'm fairly close to reality.  Just curious who comes up with those comments on the CWOP sites.

As for the ISS location....we affectionately refer to that tree as "weather tree"    Sits right on top of the highest point on our property.

[kray1000]

As for the ISS location....we affectionately refer to that tree as "weather tree"    Sits right on top of the highest point on our property.

I bet the birds love roosting on that.  

[merlinwx]

Actually, I've never seen a bird on it or any 'sign' of their presence.

[Sunfish]

Is MesoWest only for the US?

I can find nothing for the UK.

[xykotik]

Mesowest is a University of Utah project that uses MADIS data (from NOAA) so unfortunately I think it is US only.  But it looks like the UK is launching it's own UK Citizen Weather Campaign of sorts that doesn't require an expensive PWS.

[Sunfish]

Thanks for the UK link.

The UK Met Office is putting this together, but it's taking forever.
I believe they are running out of money.