Ticker for May 27, 2009

                
MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ...
May 27, 2009       May 27, 2009       May 27, 2009       May 27, 2009


Four Billion Served!

Sorry for any McDonald's fans I've led astray. This Ticker is not about
hamburgers. Not for lack of research, mind you! And if there is a support group
for folks who still have psychological scars from their first encounter with
the molten lava inside one of those hot apple pies, drop me an e-mail. Burger
King fans have their own problems, so we won't even go there.

No, we're talking Oklahoma Mesonet observations here. At 9:48 AM on May 27,
2009, the Oklahoma Mesonet celebrated its four billionth air and soil
observation. Most of you know all about the Mesonet, but for those of you that
don't, here's a bit more information, free of charge! Now, you want fries with
that or what?

Since January 1, 1994, every five minutes, these weather stations have
quietly measured air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and
direction, barometric pressure, rainfall, solar radiation, and various
other observations.

What's not quiet, however, are the impacts those four billion measurements
have had on the lives of Oklahomans. Through its use by school teachers,
emergency managers, agricultural producers, state and local officials, and
other decision makers, the Mesonet has been instrumental in protecting the
lives and property of Oklahomans, mitigating the effects of adverse weather
on our economy, and opening up new learning opportunities for Oklahoma
schoolchildren.

The Oklahoma Mesonet is a joint project between the University of Oklahoma
and Oklahoma State University. There are 120 Mesonet stations in Oklahoma,
with at least one station in every county of the state.It is funded
primarily through the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education and the
Oklahoma Department of Public Safety.

Gary McManus
Associate State Climatologist
Oklahoma Climatological Survey