W01 Surface Weather Flashcards
What are the two main types of weather obs?
Hourly and synoptic
MANOBS
Manual prescribing the standard procedures of the Meteorological Service of Canada for observing, recording, and reporting weather conditions.
List the five parts of the MANOBS
-Part A: Observing procedures-Part B: Hourly Observation recording procedures-Part C: Synoptic Observation recording procedures-Part D: Pilot Reports-Part E: Climatological Summary, METAR code, etc.
Hourly observation
Observation scheduled on the hour
Speci observation
An observation due to a significant change
Check observation
An observation confirming that no significant change has occured.
Synoptic report
A weather observation taken four times a day that is coded and transmitted in international code.
What information is included in an hourly report?
Sky condition, visibility, weather and obstruction to vision, sea level pressure data, temperature data, dew point, wind, altimeter setting, clouds, RVR, remarks, tendency* (every three hours)
What information is included in a SPECI ob?
Sky condition, visibility, weather, temperature(at selected sites), wind, clouds, RVR, remarks
What is the time schedule for an hourly observation?
Hour-6mins until the hour:observing weatherHour until Hour+1min:reading the barometer and barographHour+1min until Hour+7mins:Input observation for transmission and onto 2322
Observer’s Notebook
A pad of worksheets to be used by the observer in making calculations and recording data during the observation. Should be retained at the station for at least two months.
What are the four sections of the Surface Weather Record (2322)?
-Observed data and computations-Hourly observations-Coded synoptic reports-Summary for the climatological day ending at 0600 UTC
What information is included in section I of 2322?
-Notes and instrument defects and changes-Duration of weather and/or obstruction to vision-Precipitation amounts-Temperature extremes-Barometer readings
METSTAT
A catalogue of weather observing stations in Canada that provides information on their program and hours of operation.
How many time zones are there in Canada and what are they?
Six: PST, MST, CST, EST, AST, NST.
What kind of time is always used on the 2322?
UTC based on Local Standard Time; it does not change to Daylight Savings Time.
What are the types of reports and their abbreviations that you would enter in column 27?
Column 27-Type of reportSA: HourlySP: SPECIC: check
What is column 28?
Date
What is column 29?
Hour
What is column 43?
Observer (initials)
How many copies of 2322 are required?
Two; The official copy and the carbon copy
How is missing data indicated in an hourly report?
With an M or ‘OBSERVATION MISSING’
How is missing data indicated in a synoptic report?
‘X’ is entered for every missing digit, for transmissions, the X is replaced with ‘/’ because letters are not recognized in synoptic messages.
What is Form 2325 called?
The Monthly Summary of Instrument Malfunctions, Changes, and New Installations
