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WKU, NOAA To Begin Work On Weather Monitoring Network
Bowling Green, Ky. - Representatives of Western Kentucky University, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service will meet Tuesday to begin working on the details of a statewide environmental monitoring network.
The network of approximately 100 automated stations will collect real-time weather and climate data, according to Dr. Stuart Foster, state climatologist and director of the Kentucky Climate Center at WKU. The project, funded by a $1.5 million federal earmark secured by U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell, will support a variety of products to serve the needs of Kentucky in agriculture, education, emergency management, water supply monitoring and weather forecasting, Dr. Foster said. Dr. Blaine Ferrell, dean of Ogden College of Science and Engineering, is pleased that the Kentucky Climate Center, which is part of WKU’s Applied Research and Technology Program, has partnered with the National Weather Service for the project. “The weather monitoring network project will be of great benefit for Kentucky farmers in predicting drought and knowing in more detail rainfall amounts on a real time basis,” Dr. Ferrell said. “Real time awareness of climate throughout the state will help determine the threat of fires or flooding. In addition, the amount of detailed data will help numerous ongoing studies addressing watershed protection. “This data will also become part of a larger database nationwide that will help climatologists to develop better models for predicting weather patterns or the effects of global warming. The benefits for society are great in terms of preparedness for impending weather related disasters and reducing loss of life and property.” The project also will benefit researchers and students at WKU as they collect and analyze the data, Dr. Foster said. “The project will support a range of research interests related to weather and climate and water quality management at Western,” he said. “This project promises to attract investment and research dollars to the university.” Dr. Foster and Dr. Rezaul Mahmood, assistant professor in the Department of Geography and Geology, recently visited similar monitoring networks at the Oklahoma Climatological Survey and the High Plains Regional Climate Center in Nebraska as well as the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska. Tuesday’s meeting with officials from NOAA and the National Weather Service offices serving Kentucky will be the first of many before the network is up and running, Dr. Foster said. More WKU news is available at www.wku.edu. If you’d like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.
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