Mesonet program open to public

By Sam Waller

The program for the West Texas Mesonet presentation scheduled for next week has been finalized, Shackelford County extension agent Kelsey Bell has announced.

The event will begin at 9:00 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 31 at the Compton Ranch and is expected to last about an hour.

There is no fee to attend and no RSVP is required. Coffee and doughnuts will be provided.

Presenters include Pantex site meteorologist Steve Kersh, Jeff Fant of the Texas A&M AgriLife Disaster Assessment and Recovery Unit, and Dee Bland of Silver Star Crop Insurance.

Bell said continuing education units will not be offered.

The program will show how the mesonet can help farmers and ranchers better gauge weather patterns.

The West Texas Mesonet, a project of Texas Tech’s National Wind Institute, provides meteorological observations from 115 stations distributed across West Texas.

The West Texas Mesonet provides real-time data including wind speed and direction at different levels, air temperatures at different levels, humidity and dew point, solar radiation, rainfall, barometric pressure, and climate histories.

More information about the project can be found online at www.mesonet.ttu.edu or by calling Bell at 325-762-9435.