NEW BERLIN, Wis. — There is a limited number of weather reporting stations in Wisconsin, leaving some areas like New Berlin in data gaps.
A new weather station network run by University of Wisconsin-Madison is hoping to change that. It is called WiscoNet and New Berlin just got one of the newest weather stations.
“How important is the weather for you guys?” asks reporter Rebecca Klopf.
“Very important,” replied Rob Musil, a Mukwonago farmer.
“I watch it every morning,” added Burnell Patnaude, another Mukwonago farmer. Both were selling their vegetables at the West Allis Farmers Market.
However, there are areas that are not being monitored the way researchers think they should. The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s WiscoNet applied for grants to change that.
Watch: New weather station in New Berlin to help in severe storms
The Wisconet manager Chris Vagasky noticed areas of the state did not have weather stations reporting to the National Weather Service. Thursday, he was in New Berlin where one of the newest stations was installed.
“It is one of the areas that we have identified as a data gap,” said Chris Vagasky. “We want to have everybody within 20 miles of a high-quality weather station.”
He says that data will be sent to the National Weather Service every five minutes and it makes a difference for everyone’s safety.
“That really goes to support the ability to forecast and issue warnings for the highly impactful weather, the severe thunderstorms, the tornadoes,” said Vagasky.
The data goes even further for farmers, offering information like soil temperature and soil moisture.
“If it gets too wet you can’t get out with a tractor,” said Patnaude.
“It depends if we are going to plant the next day or pick,” said Musil.
New Berlin also anticipates using this state’s data to apply for state or federal aid if a weather disaster should happen. That means getting you money if something like a tornado hits your house.
You can see the weather station in New Berlin by clicking here.
It’s about time to watch on your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching for “TMJ4” on your device.
Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and more.
