Weather-watching network seeks volunteers now

University of Illinois McHenry County Extension For more information, call the Extension at (815) 338-3737 or stop in at 1102 McConnell Road, Woodstock.

A new volunteer weather monitoring program is designed to increase the number and density of recording locations in the state and throughout the country.

Volunteers are needed from northern Illinois. The program is called the "Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow" (CoCoRaHS) network.

Volunteers should attend a training workshop to participate in the program as a weather observer. A training session for interested volunteers will be offered on Oct. 11 at the University of Illinois Extension office in Naperville. The program will be from 7 to 9 p.m. with registration beginning at 6:30 p.m.

CoCoRaHS is a grassroots volunteer system of backyard weather observers of all ages working together to measure and map precipitation, including rain, hail and snow, in their local communities.

The program has been established in the state by the Illinois State Water Survey and the National Weather Service. Training is done in cooperation with the University of Illinois Extension.

Advance registrations are required by Oct. 8 to attend the workshop. To register, call the University of Illinois Extension-Rockford Center office at (815) 397-7714 or e-mail to churchj@uiuc.edu.

Directions to the workshop location and other details will be distributed to registrants prior to the meeting. When registering, include the names of adults and youth attending with address, phone number and e-mail addresses.

The only background required to be a volunteer is an enthusiasm for watching and reporting weather conditions, and a desire to learn more about how the weather can affect and impact our lives. However, observers are requested to attend the training and they will be responsible for the cost of their own monitoring equipment which is approximately $25.

Participants also need access to the Internet. There is no charge to attend the training workshop and attendance at the workshop does not require participation in the program, as interested persons can attend just for the informational content.

CoCoRaHS is a nonprofit organization supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation and other contributors. It is a unique, nonprofit, community-based network of volunteers of all ages and backgrounds, working together to measure and map precipitation (rain, hail and snow).

By using low-cost measurement tools, stressing training and education, and utilizing an interactive Web site, the aim is to provide the highest quality data for natural resource, education and research applications.

It began in Colorado in 1998, and currently has observers in more than 20 states.

For details about the program network, visit www.cocorahs.org.

Recorded information from the national network also can be found at that Web site for those with an interest in weather data.