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FAQ/Help |
How do I enter data via phone? If you are calling ONLY to report data, call the number 491-6300. If you don't want to listen to the long message and are experienced in reporting by phone, you can skip over it by pressing the # key on a touch tone phone. You may also call 491-8545 to report data. What is the phone number for the Denver/Boulder Area? The phone number for the Denver/Boulder area is (720) 913-5284. This covers all of Denver and Boulder and parts of Jefferson, Adams, and Arapahoe, and Douglas counties too> What information should I report over the phone? Every time you report, you must state: your name, station number, station name, time you checked your rain gauge (hopefully sometime in the morning), and the amount of precipitation that has fallen in the past 24 hours. That is the only information which is required, but any other information that is on the Online Report Forms or the Hail Report Cards may be included over the phone as well. How do I enter data via the Internet? All you need to do is click on the "Data Entry" link on the left and fill out the form provided. For detailed instructions on how the fill out the forms go to our On-line Form Help page. I made a mistake entering data, what do I do to fix it? If only the data amounts are wrong, just reenter the data correctly. If you made a mistake entering the station name, station number, or the date, then reenter the data correctly and contact the webmaster to get the incorrect data deleted. The webmaster will need to know your station information and what information you entered incorrectly. How do I verify that my data was entered correctly? The best way to verify your data is to go to the Reports section of the web site. You data should appear in the Daily Precipitation Report, Station Summary Report or the Data Entry Report immediately. What if my data doesn't appear in the Station Summary Report or Entry Report? If you correctly entered your station number and your longitude and latitude don't appear at the top of the page or if you get an invalid station number error, that means that we don't yet have your station information entered into our mapping system. Contact the Volunteer Coordinator for your area to make sure that they have your information. It will probably take a few weeks to get your station information added to our system. How do I verify multiple days worth of data? You can verify multiple days worth of data by going to the Station Summary Report and entering your Station Number and the dates that you want to verify. What do I do if I've been gone and found water in the gauge when I returned? You need to enter your data as a multi-day report. Click on the "Multiple Day Accumulation Form" button. Enter the precipitation amount and the dates, the first date is generally the day after you left and the second date is the day you returned and emptied the rain gauge. Make sure that you don't accidentally write over good data by entering a date that is too early. Please also let us know if you think you know on which day the precipitation fell. My data is an estimate, how should that be entered? If you are estimating any amount, please note that in the Comments section of the form. What should I enter in the comments field? Leave this blank unless you have additional weather observations to make. This can include any other weather related information such as wind conditions or temperature. Please don't include messages for the webmaster, they probably won't be seen. Use the webmaster link at the bottom of the page if you need to contact the webmaster. Don't enter any information such as vacation plans, the comments can be viewed by anyone over the Internet. I have data from last year, can I enter it? Yes, you may enter any past data that you have as long as you are sure of its accuracy. Please contact the webmaster after all of the data has been entered, she may need to manually update the maps if the data is old enough. What is a Trace? Any precipitation that is seen or felt that is not a measurable amount is entered as a trace (T). If you see a drop on the pavement or feel one on your skin, that is a trace. Do Traces ever add up to measurable
precipitation? No matter how many traces you sum together, the
sum is still only a trace. When adding up precipitation for totals
as in the Station Summary Report, we convert a Trace to 0.00. Does frost count as precipitation? Technically,
frost does not count as precipitation because it did not fall from
the clouds overhead. Therefore, if you have frost, do not report
"T" for precipitation or snowfall. Just enter 0.00. However,
frost is a significant meteorological phenomenon. If possible, you
should make note of it and report it in the "Comments". What do I do with snow buildup on the
edge of my gauge? There is no perfectly correct answer here
since snow behavior can be erratic, but what I do is take a flat
object like a hardback book and I push is straight down on the gauge
from above in such a way that any snow that is inside the gauge
cylinder is knocked into the gauge, but whatever is outside falls
out. For more snow measurement details see How
to Measure Snow. Can the center tube hold more and 1 inch? Some observers have noticed that when they received more an 1 inch of precipitation, the center tube actually is 0.01 or 0.02 above the 1 inch mark. Please check for this phenomena before emptying out the center tube; estimate the amount of excess and be sure to add this amount to your precipitation reading. How do I estimate intense rain with more than 1 inch? You do not need to empty the inner tube and overflow tube every few minutes during a very heavy rain. You can use a ruler to measure the height of water in the outer tube. One inch of rain in the overflow tube represents only about 0.90" of actual precipitation -- due to the displacement of water by the inner tube. It is OK to simply estimate the rainfall to the nearest 0.10" by measuring the water depth using a ruler and then multiplying by 0.9 to account for the displacement. Remember to add the first inch, from the inner tube. My hail pad has soft rounded dents but I didn't see any hail, what to do? The soft rounded dents are just deformations in the aluminum foil caused by rain, they aren't hail damage. Please just ignore them; the hail pad is still fine for hail data collection so you don't need to send it to us or replace it. When I melt my snow, the gauge amount and core amount don't match, which one should I report as my precipitation? The amount will rarely match but both are valid data. In general, the higher of the two is usually the best "estimate" of the amount of precipitation that fell. If you use your core measurement as your daily precipitation amount, be sure that you report your gauge catch amount in the comments. We are learning that our measurements are, in fact, just good estimates and not confident "Truth". What if some of the snow melts before
my morning observation? If 2.0 inches of snow fell on the previous
day, but in the morning there was only 0.5 inches left on the ground
due to melting or settling, the New Snow amount should be 2.0 and
the Total Depth of Snow on the ground should be reported as 0.5. |
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