MANGAWHAI'S NO.1 NEWSPAPER
|
|
Archives
|
Weather station forecasts closureBY JULIA WADE
A valuable local weather resource is predicting a not-so–sunny long-term forecast for its future, due to a financial dry spell. Mangawhai Heads Weather Station (MHWS) is a free service created and run by local man Tony Vale, providing up-to-date information for not only what to expect on the home-weather front, but also details on tidal flows, moon movements, rainfall trends and even space weather and sun spots. However due to the expense of necessary upgrades required to keep the station operating, the services future is uncertain and unfortunately may have to close. To highlight the need to cover financial costs, two locals and regular users of the site, Charles Fraser and Mike Clews, have set up a give-a-little page, hoping that crowd-funding could be the answer to help save what they believe to be an important local resource. “With the amount of boats that come into trouble on the bar I think it’s pretty important to have this local knowledge, and I know a lot of other local boaties who use this service,” says Clews, a qualified carpenter and owner of local firm Clews Construction. “I also use it for planning my weeks ahead for work as it seems to be the most accurate for me.” In order to register the day-to-day weather MHWS’s equipment is located in the middle of Mangawhai and positioned for optimal recording accuracy. A variety of instruments are utilised including an anemometer for measuring the speed of wind, a rain bucket, thermo/hydro transmitter for air temperature and humidity and solar and UV sensors. Although Vale enjoys operating the station as a hobby and has privately funded the running costs including technical online equipment, maintaining the website for the community’s free use is ‘something extra’ and any contribution to cover expenses he says will be ‘greatly appreciated’. Want to donate? Visit givealittle.co.nz/cause/mangawhaiweather/donations. Check out the weather station online at mangawhaiweather.co.nz. Mangawhai’s weather station, just like its weather, seems to have a lot of supporters. |
|
CONTACT US
|