Regular visitors to the Southwest Research and Outreach Center (SWROC) website may notice a new look to the reported weather data. In September, the SWROC joined several other ROCs partnering with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) to join and collect data for the Minnesota Ag Weather Network (MAWN). This project upgrades the ROCs’ current weather stations with advanced technology that is standardized across the MDA’s network and provides current weather updates every 15 minutes.
“With this updated weather station and corresponding online dashboard, we will continue to provide timely and accurate weather data for local farmers, industry partners, and University of Minnesota researchers in the southwest region,” said Molly Werner, SWROC Director of Operations.
Weather data is available at swroc.cfans.umn.edu/weather and includes the current air temperature, relative humidity, wind direction and speed, current rainfall total, and more. The SWROC will continue to send out weekly weather reports.
At the Southwest Research and Outreach Center (SWROC), weather data has been collected and reported for over 65 years in conjunction with vital research on the unique soils and land conditions of the southwestern area of the state. This record provides climate scientists with important information to understand the changing climate in Minnesota and how it impacts crop production across the state.
ROCs in the Network
So far, the Northwest ROC in Crookston, the Southern ROC in Waseca, and the Southwest ROC in Lamberton have been added to the MAWN initiative. Discussions are underway to add the West Central ROC in Morris and the North Central ROC in Grand Rapids as well. The Sand Plain Research Farm (SPRF) near Becker, previously part of North Dakota’s NDAWN weather network (on which MAWN is based), has also been integrated into the MAWN system.
Stefan Bischof, one of MDA’s leads on the MAWN project, said that partnering with the ROCs is a win-win scenario. “We are both working towards providing tools for farmers to help guide management decisions. A partnership with the ROCs is also a great outreach opportunity to showcase what information is available across the state.”
Ways to Get Involved
In addition to accessing MAWN weather data on the ROC websites, there are more ways the public can engage with MAWN and utilize the weather stations across the state:
- The MDA is soliciting applications from those within agricultural areas to be a weather station site location. Given Minnesota’s variable climate, the MDA has set a goal of the MAWN initiative to provide accurate weather information within 20 miles of agricultural production.
- There is a free app for the weather network in which the user can set a favorite weather station and check real-time weather data updated every 5 minutes. The app can also send you alerts when there is an inversion in your area, which is valuable information for farmers spraying their fields. The app is called “NDAWN Inversion”.