incoming weather

[glenn57]

I knew I should have been a teacher

[LPS]

It is 38 cloudy with a breeze now.  Snowflakes ARE in the air. 

[mike89]

a super lite mist is all here... 

[Jerkbiat]

It is 38 cloudy with a breeze now.  Snowflakes ARE in the air. 

No snowflakes here yet. You can keep them at your place.

[mike89]

rain started about 5 to 10 minutes ago

[glenn57]

coming down good here now........garden is even starting to puddle up!!!

[roony]

Glenn always gets all the puddles.

[LPS]

It is snowing here now. 

[LPS]

Up to an inch of snow forecasted.  The deck is getting white.

[mike89]

1.5 inches of in the gauge..   so almost 3 inches so far...   

[dutchboy]

TT the question you asked was a lot better than the answers you received.   

[Dotch]

.77" at the ranch & .71" in Bugtussle the past 24 hrs. Rainfall total for the month so far is 3.82" at the ranch & 4.73" in Bugtussle. Luckily the website where we report data keeps a running total. I'm too lazy to tally it up otherwise.

roony & mikey are correct when it comes to how gauges work. The "official" gauges we use are plexiglass and consist of an inner and outer cylinder. The catch diameter is 4". In the non-freezing months, we use an inner cylinder that's ~ 1 3/8" diameter to catch the rain collected by the 4" diameter funnel. It's calibrated down to hundredths and will measure up to an inch of liquid precip. Once it goes over an inch, there's a notch on the backside of the inner cylinder that allows the overflow to be collected in the outer 4" cylinder. The inner cylinder precip is recorded & emptied, then the remainder of the precip from the outer cylinder is poured into the inner cylinder for a precise measurement. Like roony mentioned, you could take a ruler and measure it but since the MN Climatology Dept. wants the data recorded in hundredths, that's what we do. When the weather starts freezing, we remove the inner cylinder so it doesn't crack and measure the precip captured in the outer cylinder. Sometimes that involves thawing frozen precip indoors then measuring it with the inner cylinder. We won't discuss measuring snowfall as that gets to be more of an art than a science. 

Here is where the data we collect is recorded. If you go to "Browse" on this page, you can type in the county of the data you desire to see and burn all kinds of free time.

  https://climateapps.dnr.state.mn.us/HIDENsityEdit/HIDENweb.htm

[glenn57]

  sure dotch....get all fancy and college edjamacated on us!!!!!!! sheez!!!

[mike89]

thinking I could use a new rain gauge, the paint for the lines and numbers is not good...  generally I broke them before this... 

[roony]

One thing I have noticed is that rainfall and snowfall amounts can vary a lot over a short distance. In fact I have one neighbor who always has more rain at his place than anyone else. He is also 5 degrees hotter in the summer and colder in the winter than anyone else.

[mike89]

isn't there someone like that everywhere??   

[glenn57]

ended up with 2 1/2 inches.........didnt dump it out from the first round so thats that total!!!

[Dotch]

isn't there someone like that everywhere??   

Amen to that mikey! I wish I had a dollar for every time someone in town with their 1/2" diameter 50-year old seed corn rain gauge has told me, "You had to have more rain than that! My gauge said bla bla bla!" Never mind they have it mounted under a tree where the leaves funnel rain into the gauge or they forgot to dump it from three rains ago. The latter is why we measure every 24 hrs. It's always been dumped. No question, the amounts often vary too. The two official gauges we monitor are identical but ~6 miles apart. Very seldom do they read exactly the same. On half mile long fields, have scouted some on 4 wheeler over the years after a rain. It's bone dry on one end but you can get stuck on the other. 

Measuring snow is a crapshoot even with a gauge opening diameter of 4". Sometimes if there's no wind, which is seldom, it's pretty close. In town, that happens more frequently when double checked with a ruler or yardstick around the lot. Most of the time at the ranch where it's always windy, I have to take the yardstick and measure depth numerous places around the yard where it's flat to get an average. Sidewalk works sometimes, sometimes the feeders in the lot are better depending on wind direction. To get the liquid equivalent, we do what's known as cutting a biscuit. You find a representative area in a level spot, take the 4" outer cylinder, stick it open end down in the snow, then slip a sheet of plastic or metal under it like a spatula. Tip it up and take it inside to melt out. There again, sidewalk, picnic table, or some other hard, level surface work best for that measurement. You don't want a gauge full of crap other than snow.

[glenn57]

isn't there someone like that everywhere??   

Amen to that mikey! I wish I had a dollar for every time someone in town with their 1/2" diameter 50-year old seed corn rain gauge has told me, "You had to have more rain than that! My gauge said bla bla bla!" Never mind they have it mounted under a tree where the leaves funnel rain into the gauge or they forgot to dump it from three rains ago. The latter is why we measure every 24 hrs. It's always been dumped. No question, the amounts often vary too. The two official gauges we monitor are identical but ~6 miles apart. Very seldom do they read exactly the same. On half mile long fields, have scouted some on 4 wheeler over the years after a rain. It's totally dry on one end but you can get stuck on the other. 

Measuring snow is a crapshoot even with a gauge opening diameter of 4". Sometimes if there's no wind, which is seldom, it's pretty close. In town, that happens more frequently when double checked with a ruler or yardstick around the lot. Most of the time at the ranch where it's always windy, I have to take the yardstick and measure depth numerous places around the yard where it's flat to get an average. Sidewalk works sometimes, sometimes the feeders in the lot are better depending on wind direction. To get the liquid equivalent, we do what's known as cutting a biscuit. You find a representative area in a level spot, take the 4" outer cylinder, stick it open end down in the snow, then slip a sheet of plastic or metal under it like a spatula. Tip it up and take it inside to melt out. There again, sidewalk, picnic table, or some other hard, level surface work best for that measurement. You don't want a gauge full of crap other than snow.

:scratch:i just assumed Roony was talking about you??? after all, he does say you get the best of everything..and i believe him!!!

[roony]

Well even though you're not my neighbor Glenn, I was sort of talking about ...  lol.

[Dotch]

Don't you have some cumquats to stock, glenn? 

[Gunner55]

Still misting here, neighbor said he 1.1 since late Saturday & Sunday. That's ~ 2.6" since he went home 2 weeks ago Saturday.

[tangle tooth]

        This morning I had .85" of rain. By my calculations and records, we've had 3.4" since April first.

[KEN W]

.90 here total. More coming tomorrow late afternoon and evening.

[Bobberineyes]

We gots a new rain gauge from FF so it doesn't lie..lol. 1 1/8" since yesterday.  It's a 2" round guy made a glass,  us city slickers won't know the difference..

[tangle tooth]

We gots a new rain gauge from FF so it doesn't lie..lol. 1 1/8" since yesterday.  It's a 2" round guy made a glass,  us city slickers won't know the difference..

I got my new gauge from FF, too.

[roony]

I got a fleet farm pail.

[markn]

Poured out 1.45" yesterday for a total of 2.85" over the two days.

[Gunner55]

Finally put 1 of our gauges out yday, might try to get the other 1 out today.  

[Dotch]

Looks like we're in the Lawrence Welk rain pattern. Ah one and a two... Rain expected this afternoon into the evening, starting up again tomorrow nite thru Thursday, then a good chance on Monday again with lesser chances in between. Expected 7-day accumulations of ~2". Might see some sun Friday & Sunday.