ASOS
National Program
The ASOS All Weather Precipitation Accumulation Gauge (AWPAG) represents a significant advancement in meteorological observation, particularly for measuring precipitation in all forms, including liquid, freezing, and frozen. Unlike earlier heated tipping bucket gauges that struggled with accurate measurements of snow and mixed precipitation, the AWPAG utilizes a weighing principle. This "intelligent" gauge continuously weighs the accumulated precipitation, converting the weight into a liquid-equivalent depth. Equipped with internal firmware algorithms, the AWPAG can filter out environmental noise such as wind turbulence and temperature fluctuations, and also features heating control for its orifice to prevent blockages. This technology aims to provide more accurate and reliable precipitation data, especially in challenging cold-weather conditions, crucial for various applications including aviation, flood forecasting, and climatology.
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US Dept of Commerce
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
National Weather Service
ASOS
1325 East West Highway
Silver Spring, MD 20910
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