westislandweather.com

Hi ML. Hope all is well with you. Is there somewhere on your website or another site where I can log snow fall events? The precip column of your data log doesn't show it as I am sure it will only show liquid precip. For instance I know it snowed heavy on or about Dec. 19 before Christimas, however your precip column shows 0.00. The last it rained was somewhere around Dec. 13 according to your data log. Any ideas? I just need to catch up with my logging activities so I'm going back about seven weeks..

Gary

 ANSWER: HI GARY, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION! EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO REFERENCE LOCAL AND NATIONAL STORM EVENTS INCLUDING SNOWFALL TOTALS ARE ON THE WEATHER REVIEW PAGE. SEE BELOW AND ENTER!

THE WEATHER REVIEW PAGE

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The Weather Review page has a detailed monthly recap of Fairhaven/Acushnet weather highlights and Special Reports on significant storm events in Southeastern Massachusetts.

 THE RADAR IMAGE IS NOT UPDATED TO CORRECT TIME:

ANSWER; SIMPLY RELOAD/REFRESH PAGE FOR THE LATEST RADAR LOOP IMAGE

 Rain rate feature; The HOURLY RAIN RATE is the total that has occurred within 1 Hour. The RAIN RATE is the amount of precipitation or volume that could be reached in an hour at the rate it is falling at the time. This is a great feature of this system hope it is of help to you.

 I can't view WeatherFlash on my computer:

WeatherFlash uses the Macromedia Flash 6 player available at http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer

I can't see any video:

I RECENTLY HAD THAT PROBLEM WHEN I GOT A NEW COMPUTER. TYPICAL PC WITH WINDOWS Vista, WHEN I WENT TO MY HOMEPAGE AND CLICKED SKYCAM ALL I SAW WAS A BLACK SCREEN AND A RED X AT THE UPPER LEFT. RIGHT ABOVE IN THE TOOL BAR IT ASKED ME TO INSTALL A PLUG IN. I DID THAT WITH NO PROBLEMS AND THE VIDEO CAME ON.

I can't hear sound:

RIGHT NOW THE ONLY SOUND THAT IS ACTIVATED IS THE SkyCam360 LIVE STREAMING VIDEO AND YOU TUBE SECTIONS. NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR THE NORTHEAST REGION OF THE US IS PLAYING ALONG WITH THE US COAST GUARD WHEN ACTIVE. IF YOU DECIDE TO PLAY A YOUTUBE CLIP YOU'LL HAVE TO MUTE THE AUDIO FOR THE SkyCam360 STREAM. SOME COMPUTERS HAVE THE MUTE BUTTON RIGHT BELOW THE SCREEN WITH VOLUME SETTINGS.

SOME SCREENS ON CERTAIN COMPUTERS DON'T HAVE THIS FEATURE. THIS IS A SOFTWARE ISSUE-OR LACK THEREOF.  WE ARE WORKING ON A SOLUTION AND WILL POST HERE. ILL TRY TO PUT A LINK HERE FOR A FREE DOWNLOAD THAT SHOULD CORRECT AND IMPROVE THIS BUG.

why are some anemometers spinning and some not?

WHEN THE WIND IS NEAR CALM (LESS THAN 5 MPH) THE WIND CUPS NEED THAT EXTRA PUSH OF SUSTAINED WIND TO BE ACTIVE AND GIVE STABLE READINGS. THERE ARE CURRENTLY FIVE ANEMOMETERS ON THE TOWER, THREE OF WHICH ARE SEMI RETIRED AND DO NOT SEND WIND SPEED DATA OUT ON THIS SITE. LIKE MANY OF US, THEY GET STIFF WITH OLD AGE. SOME ARE OVER 16 YEARS OLD AND HAVE BATTLED THROUGH MANY TOUGH STORMS THROUGH THE YEARS. THE ANEMOMETER SEEN PARTIALLY CUT OFF IN THE VIDEO SCREEN IN THE UPPER LEFT WITH LARGE CUPS IS A NEWLY INSTALLED DAVIS VANTAGE PRO RIG AND IS CURRENTLY BEING USED TO SEND OUT WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION. IT'S CRAMPED UP THERE TO FIT CAMERAS SO THAT'S THE BEST SHOT I CAN DO RIGHT NOW.

the picture looks grainy or fuzzy at times 

KEEP IN MIND THAT THESE CAMERAS ARE OUTSIDE IN THE ELEMENTS. LIGHTING CONDITIONS VARY FROM BRIGHT CLEAR SUNNY DAYS AND OVERCAST ONES. WHEN THE SUN MOVES ACROSS THE SKY IT MAY INTERFERE WITH SOME CAMERAS WITH GLARE. MY SYSTEM USUALLY WILL AUTOMATICALLY DISABLE A CERTAIN CAMERA IF THE IMAGE GETS TOO UNSTABLE.

 will I be able to see lightning storms at your station?

WITHIN REASON 

LIGHTNING EVENTS ARE THE MOST DREADED STORM SYSTEMS I ENCOUNTER HERE AT WEST ISLAND WEATHER STATION. THE CURRENT PROCEDURE VARIES WITH STORM DISTANCE, SPEED AND A NUMBER OF OTHER PARAMETERS.  THERE ARE THREE LEVELS OF PREPAREDNESS PROCEDURES I FOLLOW.

LEVEL 3: IF AN ISOLATED CONVECTIVE CELL IS TRANSITING 10+ MILES TO THE NORTH AND HEADING EAST OUT INTO THE OCEAN WE WILL STAY ON LINE.

LEVEL 2: IF A SERIES OF CONVECTIVE CELLS  ARE INBOUND WITHIN 8 MILES AND LIGHTNING STRIKES ARE DETECTED, AUXILIARY POWER COMPONENTS ARE ENGAGED.

LEVEL 1: IF A SERIES OF WELL DEFINED CONVECTIVE CELLS WITH HIGH WINDS EXCEEDING 35 MPH, HEAVY RAIN AND SEVERE LIGHTNING ARE 25 MILES AWAY AND ARE HEADED STRAIGHT FOR WEST ISLAND WE GO IN "COLLISION MODE" WITH THE EXPECTATION THAT A POTENTIAL LIGHTNING STRIKE IS IMMINENT., WITH LOSS OF POWER, FLOODING AND A POSSIBLE FIRE.

MOST ASSETS WILL BE POWERED DOWN WITH AUXILIARY POWER GENERATOR ON STAND BY FOR ANTICIPATED POWER LOSS. COMMUNICATIONS TO SKYWARN WILL REMAIN IN SERVICE AND REPORTS WILL CONTINUE AS SAFETY ALLOWS. FLASH FLOODING PROCEDURES ARE PUT IN PLACE. THE TOWER RIGGING IS SECURED ALL FLAGS TAKEN DOWN. THEN I CROSS MY FINGERS. I DON'T CARE WHAT ANYBODY SAYS ABOUT GROUNDING YOUR STUFF. IT WILL MITIGATE BUT DOES NOT GUARANTEE NOT GETTING HIT BY A LIGHTNING STRIKE.  IF LIGHTNING WANTS TO TAKE A RIG  OUT-THEN BYE BYE. WE'VE BEEN HIT DIRECTLY BEFORE WITH SERIOUS DAMAGE. 

(THERE ARE 2 DISTINCT TYPES OF LIGHTNING-A COLD BOLT, WHICH IS EXPLOSIVE ON IMPACT, AND A HOT BOLT WHICH IS INCENDIARY. EITHER ONE CAN HAVE DEADLY RESULTS. MORE PEOPLE GET KILLED BY LIGHTNING EVERY YEAR IN THE US THAN ANY OTHER WEATHER PHENOMENA.

ALL WEATHER DATA SHOULD BE SAVED FOR REVIEW AFTER A STORM EVENT EVEN IF WE SHUT DOWN. 

what kind of flags are flying in some the camera shots?

WEATHER PERMITTING, FLAG PROTOCOL IS STRICTLY FOLLOWED WHEN THEY ARE DISPLAYED. THE US FLAG FLIES AT THE HIGHEST POINT ON THE TOWER.IT'S SIZE DEPENDS ON WIND DIRECTION AND SPEED.  I HAVE THREE SIZES, 3X5 STANDARD 15 SQ FT, 9X11 100 SQ FT, AND A LARGE 12X18, 216 SQ FT. THE LARGEST FLAG HAS VERY STRINGENT WIND CRITERIA TO FLY. SUSTAINED WINDS 11MPH NOT EXCEEDING 18MPH-N/S WESTERLY ONLY. IT IS A SUPERVISED FLIGHT. IT'S ENTANGLEMENT IN THE RIGGING COULD CAUSE SERIOUS DAMAGE TO TOWER INSTRUMENTS AND GEAR.

OTHER FLAGS SEEN (30 FT above ground level) 30ft BELOW INCLUDE THE COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS STATE FLAG, THE US NAVY, AND US COAST GUARD. ON HOLIDAYS THE 'HOUSE FLAGS' FLY FROM ALL RIGGINGS AND HALYARDS ALONG WITH THE INTERNATIONAL MARITIME SIGNAL FLAGS WHICH INDICATE MY CALL SIGN, LOCATION ETC. Check out the YouTube video link below (clip on this site with the ISS space station over my tower) you'll see the flags at the end of the clip with the big flag in action.

OFFICIAL WEATHER SIGNAL FLAGS ARE DISPLAYED IN SPECIFIC STORM EVENTS. THE WORST IS WHAT I AFFECTIONATELY CALL MY "BATTLE FLAGS" WHICH ARE THE HURRICANE SIGNAL FLAGS. (see my home page cover for what they look like. that was a test flight FYI) 

 the video cuts out and goes black on CamStreams  Chat Room site

THIS IS A PROBLEM WITH CAMSTREAMS. TO CORRECT THIS, SIMPLY REFRESH THE PAGE AND WAIT A FEW SECONDS. YOU WILL SEE "BUFFERING" CAPTION AND THE PICTURE SHOULD RETURN.  THIS PROBLEM OCCURS AT RANDOM., BUT IS STABLE MOST OF THE TIME THEY ARE WORKING OUT SOME BUGS.

 

 Mission Statement           

The West Island Weather Station of Fairhaven Massachusetts
is one of the most technologically advanced PWS weather
stations in the country. WIWS is recognized by both national and International weather organizations and continues to achieve high rankings.

The primary mission is to provide weather enthusiasts ideas
and information on the latest in internet innovations involving
the sharing and distribution of weather data from personal
weather stations worldwide.

As an amateur radio station, the West Island Weather Station
also performs its purpose in the experimentation of technology through amateur radio communications., to assist in the mitigation of property loss and public safety in man made or natural disasters. To promote international good will on behalf of The United States of America.
    
Enjoy your visit to The West Island Weather Station, and come by often.  There’s always plenty of coastal storm action here along the  south coast of Massachusetts. You’ll always find real-time weather data ,SkyCam and lots of other features including photo and video galleries, links to other great sites and more!

JUST A FEW OF THE FEATURES YOU'LL FIND :

WEATHERFLASH
Perhaps the most impressive weather software program yet. Real-Time Data from the Virtual Weather Software program interconnected with WeatherFlash makes for an attractive and user friendly weather screen. Data from WIWS Station #4, Davis Vantage Pro II Wireless. Primary Feed Other features include still pics from SkyCam that can easily link direct to the live stream.

SKYCAM360
West Island Weather Station has one of the most elaborate live streaming video systems in the country. Mounted on top of a 50ft Rohn tower-most of the horizon for 360 degrees is covered with wide angle color cams. High resolution-large screen. Video and special programming can be broadcast also,

AWEKAS is an acronym for "Automatisches WEtterKArten System" (= automatic weather map system) and is, as the name suggests, a system which produces overview maps from the weather data provided by participating private weather stations. The data is made available to AWEKAS by the weather station operators who upload a small text or CSV file to their own website. AWEKAS then collects this data automatically, and processes it to provide up to date maps. Data from WIWS Station #4-Weather Envoy

CAMSTREAMS  This is a favorite for WIWS visitors to view SkyCam and have live chat with a neighbor next door or a guest from around the world. Many visitors from the UK frequent this site and enjoy chat on a regular basis. This site is the WIWS's goodwill ambassador. Real-Time weather and other fun  features  can be found here.