Since installing the weather station in September 2009, it has never had any changes to the hardware. This week, however, I added a solar sensor.
With this sensor, I can record sunshine hours, solar radiation, solar kilowatt-hours and evapotranspiration, which is the sum of evaporation and plant transpiration from the Earth’s land surface to the atmosphere. Evaporation accounts for the movement of water to the air from sources such as the soil and bodies of water.
Solar radiation is measured in watts per square metre and from this figure, the total sunshine hours is estimated. Sunshine hours is the amount of time that the solar energy being received is at least 75% of the maximum possible for that day and time.
The sensor I purchased is a Davis Instruments Solar Radiation Sensor – 6450, which I brought from the Weather Shop in Eastbourne.
Once the sensor is installed and working correctly, I intend to add an ultra violet sensor to measure the sunburning portion of the UV spectrum. This will allow the station to display UV index, dose rate, and daily and accumulated dose.
Visit Bracken House weather site to view the latest solar related pages.