The National Weather Service is seeking volunteers for CoCoRaHS
We’re heading into spring and with it come storms and other types of active weather. When you turn to local meteorologists for answers to your questions, there are ways to help them too.
We’re heading into spring and with it come storms and other types of active weather. When you turn to local meteorologists for answers to your questions, there are ways to help them too. The Community Rain, Hail and Snow Collaborative Network, also known as CoCoRaHS, is looking for volunteers. If you haven’t heard of it before, here’s what you need to know: CoCoRaHS is a grassroots network of backyard weather watchers who collect rain, hail, and snow data in their community. It is open to anyone of all ages and educational backgrounds and even gives children the opportunity to grow in basic math skills. We spoke with the local CoCoRaHS coordinator at the National Weather Service in Wilmington who told us more about the effort, which started 25 years ago. this June.” CoCoRaHS stands for Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow network and it is a program that the National Weather Service works with. CoCoRaHS actually started in 1998 in response to a devastating flash flood the previous year in Colorado, when the need for more precipitation observations materialized. And since then, CoCoRaHS has spread across the country and beyond, and anyone can join CoCoRaHS. All you need is a standard 4-inch rain gauge and internet access.” Novak said there are lots of benefits to joining the network as well. “Some of the benefits of CoCoRaHS are completely free data for anyone to use and available for anyone to come in as a CoCoRaHS observer, you’re actually part of the mission to protect life and property,” said Novak. Novak. All the data you report helps the national weather service to issue those life-saving warnings. The next virtual training is Monday, March 20th at 6pm and you can register online. The time commitment to volunteer for the CoCoRaHS network is minimal. The training lasts one hour, and if you are unable to attend the session, you can also access a slideshow of the training on the CoCoRaHS website. How much time you devote to data reporting afterwards is up to you. It only takes a few minutes to observe and report it on the website or app.
We’re heading into spring and with it come storms and other types of active weather.
When you turn to local meteorologists for answers to your questions, there are ways to help them too.
The Community Rain, Hail and Snow Collaborative Network, also known as CoCoRaHS, is looking for volunteers. If you haven’t heard of it before, here’s what you need to know: CoCoRaHS is a grassroots network of backyard weather watchers who collect rain, hail, and snow data in their community. It is open to anyone of all ages and educational backgrounds and even gives children the opportunity to grow in basic math skills.
We spoke with the local CoCoRaHS coordinator at the National Weather Service in Wilmington who told us more about the effort, which started 25 years ago this June.
“CoCoRaHS stands for Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow network and it is a program that works closely with the National Weather Service. CoCoRaHS actually started in 1998 in response to the devastating flash floods the previous year in Colorado, when there was a need for more observations rainfall materialized. And since then, CoCoRaHS has spread across the country and beyond, and anyone can join CoCoRaHS. All you need is a standard 4-inch rain gauge and internet access.”
Novak says there are lots of advantages to joining the network as well.
“Some of the benefits of CoCoRaHS are that the data is completely free for anyone to use and available for anyone to use on the CoCoRaHS website and by becoming a CoCoRaHS observer you truly are part of the mission to protect life and property,” said Novak.
All the data you report helps the national weather service issue those life-saving warnings.
The next virtual training is Monday, March 20th at 6pm and you can register online. The time commitment to volunteer for the CoCoRaHS network is minimal. The training lasts one hour, and if you are unable to attend the session, you can also access a slideshow of the training on the CoCoRaHS website. How much time you devote to data reporting afterwards is up to you. It only takes a few minutes to observe and report it on the website or app.
