Our network

Why this network?

Yet another measurement network of weather stations? Yes! But in contrast to other public networks already available on the internet, this network has some very big advantages.

In order to compare data from weather stations, two important things must be taken into account:

• What equipment is being used to perform the measurements?
• Where is it measured (location)?

The hardware of the weather stations used throughout our network is all identical to each other. If the locations are also the same then measurement data can be easily compared.

• The setup of the weather station is as free and open as possible. There are few weather stations set up in a small backyard. In other public networks, the location of many stations is not at all known and unfortunately there is sometimes a lot of clutter in the numerical data. 
  After all, 'big data' is not always correct data!
• Where the setup is not good because of a measurement in the city or garden effect, then this is clearly stated at these stations.
• For measuring the temperature and other parameters, the MeteoHelix weather station developed by BARANI DESIGN is used. These weather stations are also in use by the RMI in the climatological measurement network. It was extensively studied and tested by them for accuracy in different weather conditions. The station has been found to be very good for temperature measurement. Read more about this weather station in our article on measuring equipment.
• The weather stations used are fully automatic. New data is transmitted every 10 minutes. This is done over an IoT network (IoT = Internet-of-Things). Therefore, a weather station can be placed anywhere as long as there is network coverage. 
  The weather station is not dependent on a WiFi network. Moreover, IoT is very energy efficient, drawing energy from a (small) solar panel. But even without sun - for example during the dark winter period - the weather station can take and transmit measurements for months.
• The transmission of the data is synchronized. This is useful for generating summary maps every 10 minutes. After all, we know that on the minutes 01, 11, 21, 31, 41, 51 each hour all data has been received. The maps therefore always show the most recent data.
• The temperature and humidity measurements comply with the standards (accuracy) of the WMO (World Meteorological Organization).
• The sensors in the weather station can be calibrated and, if necessary, replaced if they no longer meet the accuracy requirements.
• The weather stations in the network are managed by people with a passion for the weather. The weather is monitored closely on a daily basis and any anomalies in the measurement data are detected very quickly and, of course, corrected as soon as possible. This is quite different from people who buy a weather station on a whim, look after it for a while and then leave it alone... but in the meantime the data - correct or not - is transmitted automatically.

Choice of locations

When expanding the network, we strive to have an even coverage throughout the country. Attention is also paid to regions with specific characteristics.

For example, most likely the Kempen can record the highest temperatures during the summer season. In the valleys in the Ardennes, we measure the lowest temperatures during winter season with clear radiant nights above a snow cover. The coastal region, on the other hand, shows a much more moderate climate with smaller temperature extremes than inland. But winds can be stronger especially during storms... In every region of our country there is something special to measure!