Weather Station Online!

My Observatory Just Got Smarter: Weather Station Install!

Leveraging the May 1st holiday, I finally got around to installing my weather station at the observatory! I went with a Lacrosse Technology WS1080, which comes packed with an anemometer (for wind speed!), a rain gauge, a hygrometer, a thermometer, and, crucially, a PC connection. Out of the box, it includes EasyWeather, a neat little piece of software that pulls real-time data. This means I can check the observatory’s weather conditions remotely – exactly what I was looking for!

This is just the first step. Down the line, I’m planning to integrate an AAG Cloudwatcher (or something similar) to detect clouds in the dark, and maybe even a Sky Quality Meter to keep an eye on sky transparency. Future upgrades, you know!

Here’s a look at the sensors:

And the station itself, plus the EasyWeather software in action: