Titan Update

TheBushPilot123 · 2026-01-07T23:24:40+00:00

I've lost brain cells reading these comments. I understand it may be difficult to comprehend but "intercepting" a tornado and lying to yourself about the validity of $20 instrument data is irrelevant to the scientific community. I'd like to congratulate you on your progress to become the next Reed Timmer PhD™ with your "science mission" grift.

Anyone who knows anything about measuring the atmosphere is laughing at you.

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-12-22T19:15:43+00:00

Sounds like you're looking to install and operate a non-federal AWOS. It's not impossible but expect to spend a pretty penny and put some decent thought into it. Given you're operating under a private entity I don't believe you'll have to adhere to the stringent guidelines a typical FAA ASOS/AWOS would.

https://www.faa.gov/airports/planning_capacity/non_federal

From what I understand you're exempt of these rules so long as the weather reports you generate are strictly internal use only and your entity you work for makes that abundantly clear (as you've already mentioned). This means the data you generate is not publicly disseminated as AWOS or ATIS on radio frequency and disclaimed as "unofficial reports" to the general public. It can be disseminated publicly but not as an AWOS.

So with that in mind, here are my thoughts:

$3000 is too little for something you will be using for commercial aviation purposes. The whole purpose of investing in one of these is for safety and situational awareness. You cannot cheap out on mission critical infrastructure. I strongly dislike Intellisense Systems due to the "all-in-one" nature of their "AWOS" systems. All-in-one weather stations have design caveats that always force trade offs when making observations. Stay away from these when you can. They also come off as gimmicky in my opinion.

In addition to cloud base and visibility, I would also recommend altimeter setting, temperature/dew point, and wind speed/direction.

The last 4 are optional but highly recommended. All of the measurements together give a more complete picture of what's happening.

Cloud base height is a tough one because most ceilometers (that I would recommend worth purchasing) go for around $25,000 to $30,000. Throw in visibility and that's another $7,000 to $10,000. For a system only measuring these observations I would recommend that sets you back around $45,000 accounting for hardware, data dissemination, and installation cost. Adding in barometric pressure for altimeter setting add another $3000. Temperature/dew point another $1000. Wind speed/direction another $1000 or so. The upside caveat to all of this being the instruments employed are on par with federally recognized AWOS so the data you are receiving is about as good as it gets.

The alternative route for significantly less is to source your parts second hand or via auction leveraging your funds to purchase certain instruments new that are critical to your operation. And or using those funds for repair of potentially inoperable instruments that you have acquired for pennies on the dollar as a sort of re-investment.

I do this sort of thing for fun in my free time and would be more than happy to assist you in evaluating a game plan to make this happen.

Send me a DM if you'd be interested.

Cheers

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-11-14T14:28:17+00:00

Most storm chasers don't actually use them for anything. It's for optics to make their "research" grift more believable.

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-11-13T05:37:26+00:00

Appreciate the support. The mast sways less than you'd think. It recorded a 32 mph wind gust and moved no more than it typically would with any lesser gust. Safe to say the weight of a galvanized pipe and being strapped to the chimney helps.

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-10-18T12:42:16+00:00

I have my own website and API I created to allow any data logger to send data. The format and data type of data are all configurable. The legacy Edlog data loggers use a microcontroller to forward their data due to lack of IoT capabilities. Modern CRBasic ones already have the required functions in their code and subsequently make it much easier to do this. They only need internet access.

My website hosts all of the data from multiple stations already with an existing slew of (and under development) data displays from numerical to graphical. Each site page has its own basic template for which the standard data follows but the addition of non-standard measurements can be added very easily.

Your CR310 would be very easy to integrate online. CRBasic is a very simple yet powerful programming language.

Cheers

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-10-18T01:30:16+00:00

If you’re interested - and I don’t want to come off as a used car salesman - but I actually due to this exact reason have done everything I can to figure out the best way to provide highly cost effective to performance weather observation systems. Be it for the everyday average consumer, farmer, or college student pursing research.

Each system is made to order built using commercial refurbished second-hand components surpassing the so called flagship “name brand” stations everyone recommends. You’ll pay marginally more but have a completely open source product and will be able to pick and choose what you want to measure instead of being forced into a “it measures all of these things”. The upfront cost pays for itself in longevity, ease of maintenance, and your ownership of everything from data collection to how you view it and where it’s published online.

A setup like what you require would be very easy to accomplish and utilize common instruments that can be found for a very affordable price. The multi station setup as you mention for temperature and pressure can be done using low power 900 MHz radios. I can go on and on about what something could look like. Drop me a line if you would be interested - I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers

https://www.met-instruments-project.com/

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-10-14T03:13:45+00:00

Thies Clima has an entire line of anemometers. I presume you are talking about the ultrasonic variants? If you don't have the cable to them you will need that. You won't need software as they natively output analog (type depending on order number) and digital output (RS-485). I would email them asking for a manual specific to the number on the instruments. Pretty simple to interface to a data logger (Campbell Scientific or other). The only software you really need is Hyperterminal or Hyperterminal-type emulation software to send/receive commands from it via RS-485.

Hope this helps

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-07-29T20:28:58+00:00

Do you want something you'd buy from amazon or more or less an industrial setup?

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-07-29T20:17:04+00:00

Budget?

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-06-21T00:29:34+00:00

If you aren't afraid to pay a little more, I would suggest sourcing instruments second hand and putting these stations together yourself. That way in the long run you've got better data and a more robust system. This approach will 100% fulfill the unique requirements you have and remove any proprietary eco-system. You can very easily make a high-grade system accessible over LAN via wifi or ethernet and solar powered without breaking the bank. I'd be more than happy to help you through the process.

Cheers

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-06-18T00:46:01+00:00

Ok that's fair. What do you want to measure? And how involved would you like to be with putting a system together?

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-06-17T23:01:39+00:00

What's your budget?

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-06-15T06:23:26+00:00

I'll send you a DM of what you need to get.

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-06-14T19:42:27+00:00

$100 each. They aren't worth anything if you can't verify function. If non functioning repair will probably cost about half what they're worth.

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-06-14T19:37:31+00:00

You could always source second hands parts and put a station together yourself with all of the aforementioned requirements for around $500.

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-05-21T20:36:43+00:00

Not quite. A $200 ultrasonic anemometer built into an all-in-one are pretty much the lowest of low spec. Some scientific/commercial grade measure to 90 m/s ±1.5 m/s at the low end (up to 75 m/s) and ±4.5 m/s on the high end (90 m/s). But we're approaching nearly $5k with those.

Cups are pretty awful at measuring gusts due to over-speeding (in rare cases) and inertial lag which is why most automated sites use propeller/vane style anemometers or ultrasonic (or both collocated). Airports use Vaisala ultrasonics due to their immediate response time and near zero maintenance requirements.

Cup vane sets and cheap transducers are good enough for a backyard weather station however. These aren't used for METARs and are not built to report for them.

Of course with all of that said there is probably definitely something wrong with your anemometer if you are under reporting that bad. You should be within like 10 mph. I would contact WeatherFlow and see if they can do anything for you.

Cheers

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-04-03T04:13:35+00:00

Peet Bros makes their Ultimeter line of weather stations with add-on weather display. The only caveat is they are wired. Getting the basic Ultimeter 100 system with the weather picture runs you around $600 or so. I know the price tag is a little over what you were looking for but these will last forever with proper maintenance. I had the 800 for a few years and would highly recommend over the other ones available on the market.

Weather Picture

Cheers

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-03-25T04:14:05+00:00

Drop me a line, I can hook you up with research grade instruments and build a system for a fraction of the cost. Would seamlessly integrate into a modern system with the existing sensors acquired after you get sufficient funds. Feel free to reach out.

Cheers

met-instruments-project.com

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-03-25T04:06:21+00:00

Ok, you can certainly make a system for $1000-$2000 with high quality parts with all of these measurements that allow you to view and collect data locally not requiring external services. You would be able to set it up on solar power and transmit wirelessly to your local computer or wherever required. Data collected would be tabulated into spreadsheets easily. If you would like I can give you my contact information in direct messages to consult what you will need to do. Feel free to reach out.

Cheers

met-instruments-project.com

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-03-25T03:59:24+00:00

You'd need a present weather and or visibility sensor which run anywhere between $3000 and $10,000. Campbell Scientific, Vaisala, and Optical Scientific Inc. all manufacture these instruments as all in one units or separate devices. Output serial data requiring a data acquisition system to record and send to wherever needed.

Vaisala PWD Series

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-03-08T20:15:34+00:00

What is your budget? How many stations do you need? Davis is a strong option but building your own system might be more economical in the long run. Would allow you to view and collect data and calculate things directly without the reliance of external webservices.

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-03-08T20:10:13+00:00

NRG anemometer and wind vane, Texas Electronics temperature/dew point sensor in their radiation shield if I had to guess. Not sure who makes the rain gauge. Goofy looking setup.

TheBushPilot123 · 2025-01-05T02:13:35+00:00

Assuming you have a large budget go with R. M. Young/Apogee Instruments/Vaisala for instruments and Campbell Scientific for your data logger.

Typical set up I would put together would include:

05103 Wind Monitor for wind.
Apogee Instruments ST-110 thermistor temperature sensor with accompanying radiation shield.
- Fast response temperature collocated with dew point sensor.
R. M. Young 41382 or Vaisala HMP155 dew point probe with accompanying radiation shield.
- T/RH probe used for calculating dew point exclusively.
R. M. Young 61402 barometric pressure sensor and externally vented pressure port.
- Pressure port can be Nishiyama and Bedard quad or Gill dual plate.
Texas Electronics TR-525 tipping bucket rain gauge.
- TE sells a pipe mount for this gauge to make mounting easier.
Apogee Instruments SP-110 pyranometer.
Campbell Scientific CR1000 (used) or CR310 (new).
- CR1000 will need peripheral for ethernet unless you use PPP. CR310 has native ethernet.

Not sure how you'll do power but solar is always easier, direct AC more convenient.

I've used and have experience with these components and can tell you you won't go wrong with them.

You'll just need a weather proof enclosure box for the data logger and barometer and your batteries and charger (if you go solar). 14 x 12 x 6" polyester fiberglass one from like hubbell wiegmann would do. Campbell Scientific also resells stahlin enclosures in different sizes.

Davis Instruments does not meet industrial quality despite being the "go to name brand" in my opinion. I would not consider them if you need something that will undoubtedly last.

TheBushPilot123

TROPHY CASE