Geog. 321 -- Climatology
Exercise 1 -- Basic Weather and Climate Observations

This exercise examines some of the basic observations of weather and climate that appear on the web, focusing on Eugene in specific and Oregon and the Pacific Northwest in general.  This will be done using some of the links on the Current Weather & Climate web page.

The easiest way to complete the exercise is by filling in the forms below.  (You can also just print out this page, and fill in the answers by hand (and turn it in to us in class).)  When you finish entering the answers, click on the "Submit" button at the bottom of the page.  If your name has not been entered or an answer is blank, an error message will appear.  Otherwise, you should get a message indicating that your answers have been submitted.

Please enter your Name before beginning (Last Name, First Name)

And your email address

Next, go to the Current Weather & Climate page at http://geography.uoregon.edu/weather/ 

Under the section Quick Links, click on the link "NWS Portland Observational Data".  The page that will come up is at the National Weather Service in Portland. 

In the drop-down menu labeled "In Oregon" next to the map below the label "Regional Airport Observations (METAR)" scroll down down and click on "Eugene", or just click on "EUG" on the map.  

Question 1-1:  What variables appear in this table?  (Hint:  dwpt = "dew-point" temperature) What period of time is covered by the data in the table?

Question 1-2:  Describe the variations throughout the day in the weather--when during the day is it warmest, when is it coldest?  When is the difference between air temperature and dew point temperature the greatest, and when is it the least?  Does air pressure seem to vary more from hour to hour or from day to day?

Go to the Current Weather & Climate page, and then click on the "Current Oregon area forecast" link.

Question 1-3:  What time intervals are described in the forecast?  What particular weather features are described in the forecast?  (Note that you can click on highlighted terms in the forecast discussion to see definitions of them.)  Don't worry if the forecast doesn't make total sense at this point--it will later.

Go back  to the  Current Weather & Climate page.  Then, in the section "Links to Current Information" click on the link to "Basic Information" or scroll down to that section of the web page.  Click on the link to "Oregon Weather Reports" and check to make sure 1) Product="Daily Climate Report", 2) Location=Eugene; 3) Timeframe=Most Recent; and then 4) View (click on the gold "Go" button). 

Question 1-4:  What kinds of information are reported in this summary?  What do the "departures from normal" of temperature and precipitation indicate about the characteristics of the day?

 

When you are finished, and all answers have been completed, click on the "Submit" below to send us the exercise.  If you receive an error message, check to make sure that you've answered each question, and that your name has been filled in, and then click on "Submit" again.

Click on this button to turn in your completed exercise: