The Met Office, Exeter, UK

In August 2010 we were lucky to be able to visit the Met Office in Exeter and have a guided tour. It was very informative. We even saw the huge computer which processes the data to provide a basis for the forecasts. We also saw the area where the weather forecasters worked.

The highlight of the tour was the chance to see the recording instruments. There were very many of them. Our guide explained them all. If you have read about how your weather stations should be set up you will know that there are guidelines about where you put your instruments. This site was very good. There were examples of instruments that the amateur weather recorder would use; Stevenson Screens, rain gauges and anemometers. Also there were lots of very sophisticated instruments, and many of the instruments recorded their data digitally. Some of the instruments will soon be shown in the various Data Collection sections.

The Atmospheric Observatory, Reading University, UK

This weather station was visited in September 2010 as part of a weather conference. We were lucky enough to see the nine o'clock (GMT) readings being taken in the morning. There was a huge variety of instruments. Meteorology is an important subject at the University. Because it is part of an educational establishment many of the instruments were carefully labelled. There is also an opportunity for the Meteorology department to try out weather instruments here. Some of the instruments will soon be shown in the various Data Collection sections.

Kew, London, UK

This weather station is in a large grassed area. Kew Gardens is a large park full of all sorts of plants. Click on the image to see the flower beds. See the location on the Google Maps satellite image. The weather station has a variety of traditional and digital equipment. There are thermometers to measure soil, grass and concrete temperatures. There is more than one type of rain gauge. The weather data from this station is published on the Meteo Group website. The photograph was taken in summer 2006.

Kew has traditional instruments in a Stevenson Screen and an automatic weather station. In the picture you can see the solar panel which powers the automatic weather station. This makes it easier to put your weather station in the middle of an open area where there may not be power points.
This photograph also shows some of the thermometers that are outside the Stevenson Screen. Find out more about what that slab of concrete might be for on More About Temperature.

Roadside Weather Stations

See details about a roadside weather station in the UK on the Why Measure the Weather page.