The National Weather Services calls on locals to become citizen scientists

This story was produced by My UP News Correspondent Andrew Lorinsor. Find the original story here.

With over 26,000 active observers across North America, the “CoCoRaHS” program at the National Weather Service is one of the most important citizen programs.

However, spokespeople for the NWC and Marquette have stated that there is a pressing need for more participants. 

Jim Salzwedel, the Observation Program Leader at the NWS in Marquette said the service relies on two networks for community data. “For one, we operate the National Weather Service Cooperative Observer Program, and that’s where we really we have dedicated people in Upper Michigan.”

The other program welcomes everyone in the community to lend a hand, and is in need of more help right now. 

“One of the great things is we have a lot of citizen scientist programs,” said Salzwedel. “The CoCoRaHS network of individuals. And they also take dedicated observations of rainfall and snowfall and snow depth. And they report to us pretty much on a daily basis.”

The mission of the NWS is to protect life and property in the Upper Peninsula in the surrounding areas. Citizen observers play a crucial role in that mission, and the NWS has invited dedicated individuals to contribute daily to the community. Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network, or CoCoRaHS.

“Some of the people [in the cooperative observer program] haven’t even missed an observation in years,” said Salzwedel. “And they measure daily rainfall. Snowfall, they take temperature readings, snow depth readings are just great people.”

According to Salzwedel, local observations foster community engagement when individuals are encouraged to share their experiences and insights. It creates a sense of ownership and responsibility and helps the Service have the most up to date accurate weather information where it matters most – on the ground. 

“All that data comes to help us with ground-truth,” said Salzwedel. “You can have all the fancy satellites and radars, but you have to basically prove what’s on the ground or what’s actually fallen to to really verify all your remote sensing capabilities.”

For those interested in joining the CoCoRaHS, the NWS assures that becoming a volunteer is easy, especially for those who pay attention to detail. They encourage community members to take part in the initiative. 

“Because we have some of our cooperative observers, some of the places have been around for 30 plus years,” said Salzwedel. “CoCoRaHS is relatively newer within the last ten years or so, but anybody that wants to do that, if they’re detailed, if they have a sharp mind for details, then CoCoRaHS is really the right place to be a part of some citizen science.”

The NWS emphasizes that the CoCoRaHS program not only improves weather data collection, but also fosters community involvement. For more information on how to become a volunteer observer, visit the CoCoRaHS website.