<\/p>\n
Filling a gap in one of the nation\u2019s largest weather forecasting blind spots, a new weather station installed at the Old Fort Lewis campus in southwestern La Plata County is now transmitting real-time data.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t have a whole lot (of weather information) on that side of the county, so it will definitely help fill in some blanks,\u201d said Tom McNamara, La Plata County emergency coordinator. \u201cA lot of our job revolves around natural disasters, which are oftentimes weather-related, so that\u2019s going to fall into something we can use.\u201d<\/p>\n
Completed in September, the weather station is part of Texas Tech University\u2019s \u201cWest Texas Mesonet\u201d network of 100 stations \u2013 mostly concentrated on Texas\u2019 Panhandle Plains \u2013 that began in 2000.<\/p>\n
Yet a connection between Fort Lewis College physics professor Charlie Hakes and a staff member at Texas Tech ultimately led to discussions about installing a weather station on the college\u2019s sprawling 6,200-acre property, about 16 miles southwest of Durango.<\/p>\n
\u201cTheir study is to make better weather models of remote places where a lot of people are still just guessing,\u201d said Hakes, who is also director of the Fort Lewis Observatory. \u201cAnd Durango is now their most remote location.\u201d<\/p>\n
Crews spent about a month erecting the new weather station, which stands about 33 feet tall on the plateau above the offices of the Southwest Conservation Corp. The $23,000 station was financed in large part by Texas Tech, but also received state and federal funding, as well as endowments from wind energy companies.<\/p>\n
The station now streams 28 different parameters \u2013 including temperature, wind speed and direction, relative humidity and precipitation \u2013 to the West Texas Mesonet website every five minutes.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s tough to know what\u2019s going on (with the weather) in your area,\u201d said Wes Burgett, operations manager for the West Texas Mesonet. \u201cSo we\u2019re really anxious to see some of the data come back.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Four Corners has long been known as a sort of \u201cblind spot\u201d when it comes to weather and radar modeling, as major hubs in Albuquerque, Flagstaff and Grand Junction take in data at elevations too high to accurately hone in on places like Durango.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe radar coming out of Grand Junction is pretty high above our head here, so it doesn\u2019t see a lot of the lower-level weather going on,\u201d McNamara said.<\/p>\n
\u201cEspecially, anything below mountain tops. There\u2019s a lot that\u2019s missed from the radar, which is typically the primary source for current conditions. As a result, we have to rely more on secondary weather systems out there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Indeed, by piece-mealing stations in remote, isolated places like Hesperus, forecasters can rely on that data to create a more complete picture of the region\u2019s weather, said Dennis Phillips, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Grand Junction.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe more data we have, the better we can make our forecasts,\u201d Phillips said. \u201cObservations are really what drive everything, so accurate wind, temperature, precipitation forecasts in one spot is awesome. It\u2019s almost invaluable.\u201d<\/p>\n
The only official NOAA weather station is located by the Durango-La Plata County Airport, yet McNamara said other agency stations around the region help filter in more on-the-ground information, which is used to help predict wildfires and avalanches, as well as other extreme natural events.<\/p>\n
Yet, the station at the Old Fort Lewis campus also has some more specialized purposes, Texas Tech\u2019s Burgett said.<\/p>\n
Researchers will look at the data, at the behest of stakeholders, to help farmers and ranchers in the area better time the growing season, namely hay production, by using data to find trends with temperature, humidity and wind.<\/p>\n
The real-time data will also assist Mesa Verde Helitak pilots, who operate out of the Old Fort Lewis campus, know the wind speed and direction when they come in to land.<\/p>\n
And, Burgett said, Texas Tech University, a leading institute on wind energy research, will be paying close attention to the possibilities of production in southwestern La Plata County.<\/p>\n
So how long will the new weather station \u2013 the project\u2019s 99th \u2013 stick around?<\/p>\n
\u201cAs long as FLC wants it there,\u201d Burgett said.<\/p>\n