Columbia Weather Systems

T his National First Responder's Day, we recognize the men and women who serve our communities and help make them a safer place to live. Thank you! CWS is proud to equip first responders with professional weather monitoring equipment across the United States and beyond. Built by LDV, this Incident Command Center for Avondale AZ Police Department Police/Fire & Medical is outfitted with a Magellan MX500™ Weather Station with Weather Display console from CWS for monitoring on-site met data. Environmental awareness is critical to the safety of public and crew. Click here for a virtual tour  of the Avondale Police/Fire & Medical Incident Command Center Weather Display  installed on the vehicle interior shows weather data from the Magellan MX500 Weather Station.

💧 October 21st is Imagine a Day Without Water,* which raises awareness about the importance of an essential resource often taken for granted. This national educational campaign “brings together diverse stakeholders to highlight how water is essential, invaluable, and in need of investment” according to their website. This photo (courtesy of Central Utah Water Conservancy District) shows an Orion™ Weather Station with a solar radiation sensor at Utah’s Jordanelle Reservoir.** CUWCD manages a network of water facilities with the goal of providing clean, useable water to customers in Central Utah. *For more information about the Imagine a Day Without Water campaign, visit  imagineadaywithoutwater.org . **For more information about how CUWCD utilizes their weather monitoring equipment,  click here .

Wet Bulb Globe Temperature System Columbia Weather System's Heat Stress System was developed for the US Coast Guard in Florida to help keep workers safe in extreme heat and humid environments. A key component in this project was the stand-alone Weather Display Console, as the customer did not want to interface the met sensors to an IT network for security reasons. WBGT System Components The Wet Bulb Globe Temperature System from CWS lists for about US$4,000 and includes: Capricorn FLX Control Module Black Globe Temp Sensor - hollow copper sphere with a matte black finish with temperature probe Ambient Temp Sensor Relative Humidity Sensor Self-Aspirating Radiation Shield for Ambient Temp and RH sensors Weather Display Console – Custom screen displays WBGT, Wet Bulb Temp, Ambient Temp, Globe Temp, and BP (Additional features include Trend, Min/Max, Alarm) Sensors include 50-feet of cable each Additional sensors such as wind and solar radiation are available for custom configuratio...

Air quality indexes reached hazardous levels during recent West Coast wildfires. L ast month’s devastating wildfires along the West Coast have brought the effects of air quality to the forefront of conversation. With particulate matter from wildfire smoke reaching "hazardous" levels throughout California and the Pacific Northwest, supervisors have been relying on accurate, localized data for critical decision making.  Outdoor Air Quality Monitoring systems from Columbia Weather provide accurate, on-site data for analysis, compliance, and safety. The Orion AQM measures common gaseous pollutants along with temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure. The Orion AQM Plus includes particulate measurement with PM 2.5 and PM 10 sensors. In addition to public safety, measuring air quality is useful for industrial emission monitoring, building automation, and air quality research applications. If air quality is essential to your business operations, give us a call or visit our webs...

October 2, 2020 is Manufacturing Day, a day to highlight the importance of the industry that provides millions of jobs in the U.S. and to inspire the next generation of creators. For over 40 years, Columbia Weather has manufactured and shipped high quality custom weather monitoring equipment to professionals in public safety, military, and government industries all over the globe. In this pre-pandemic photo, Jeff explains our manufacturing process to University of Minnesota Solar Vehicle Project students visiting our facility.  Click here to learn more .

  T he first day of fall is September 22! Ever wonder how weather conditions affect autumn colors? As days get shorter and trees are exposed to less sunlight, the chlorophyll pigment that produces the dominating green color begins to fade, revealing the other colors beneath. According to the U.S. National Weather Service (NWS), a succession of warm and rainy days means less intense hues, while warm days paired with cooler evenings without frost produce the most brilliant fall colors.  Photo credit: CWS President Nader Khoury

Air Quality map from Air Now   T hanks to the many firefighters and responders who are currently facing challenging environmental conditions (low humidity, high temps and winds) while battling dozens of wildfires all across the West Coast. This map from Air Now shows current Air Quality indexes in the Pacific Northwest. Use this link to check conditions in your location . If you live in an affected area, make sure to pay attention to local alerts – stay safe!

F or Emergency Preparedness Month, we are sharing this mobile emergency operations center built by LDV for the Calcasieu, Louisiana Parish Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (OHSEP) complete with a Magellan MX500 ™ Weather Station, WeatherMaster ™ Software and display. Located in southern Louisiana, Calcasieu Parish is an area vulnerable during the hurricane season. The mobile center arrived just in time for Hurricane Laura. Magellan MX Weather Stations offer GPS and compass readings, an ideal choice for vehicle and mobile applications requiring real-time met data on the go. Contact us for information on the best weather station for your operations, or visit our website here . For a virtual walk-through of Calcasieu Parish’s mobile emergency operations center (catch a glimpse of the weather display at 1:37), watch this video . A Magellan MX500 Weather Station is mounted on the roof of the  mobile emergency operations center. This screenshot by the NOAA s...

“ H aving the best up-to-date information on when to shelter in place from hurricanes” was the goal for Tidelands Health to purchase Orion weather stations for two hospitals in South Carolina. Patrick J. Devlin is Director of Safety, Security and Emergency Preparedness for Tidelands. An early adopter of the CWS Cloud Weather Server, Devlin describes how he shares meteorological data regularly with staff and first responders and that it helps with real-time decision making: “This is the link I drive our organization and partners to due to the security of it not having to access our secure network.” Recently put to the test with Hurricane Isaias, Devlin commented, “We were able to monitor the storm through the cloud server. I was monitoring things from home and had no issues. I also know the weather stations were pulled up in the county emergency operations center and 911 center. It has been a great tool for us to share with our local emergency responders.” Thanks for the update! The CW...