air temp

Chilling Time for Cattle

Cattle in the Great Plains never know what to wear. Just when they put on their winter coat, it turns warm. Just when they settle into a warm day, temperatures drop and north winds chill a cow to the bone.

Photo: aranchmom.com

Rapid temperature change tips the scale for cattle on the verge of getting sick. It’s that added stress that can bring on bovine respiratory disease. The Cattle Comfort Index gives us a tool to monitor and measure rapid weather changes. It’s a measure of just how good or bad outdoor conditions are for cattle. Continue reading →

Relative Humidity and Dewpoint

Tuesday, October 2, 2017 provided an excellent example of why meteorologists turn to dewpoint temperature to get a better picture of moisture in the air. Relative humidity is a good index to monitor drying potential, disease potential, or fire risk, but relative humidity is relative to the air temperature. When the air temperature changes, the relative humidity changes. Dewpoint temperature is an absolute measure of water vapor, independent of air temperature.

Wheat dew on heads(2)

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Cool August Slows Cotton Maturity

Friday morning has arrived and so has another rainy August day in Oklahoma. All the rainy days this August has meant more cooler days. Those cooler August days have left cotton farmers wondering if they’ll have enough heat units to fully mature this year’s crop.

One of the ways to track a crop’s daily and accumulated heat units is with the Oklahoma Mesonet Degree-day Heat Unit Calculator. This tool allows you to enter a crop planting date and get a table of heat units for any Mesonet site. The table shows daily heat units from planting to the most current date and the accumulation of those heat units over the season.

IMG_9870 Continue reading →

January 2017 Weather Roundup

January was a month of surprises! We froze from some of the coldest temperatures we’ve seen since 2011, then ended the month basking in spring-like, warm weather.

For January, the departure from Oklahoma Mesonet‘s 15-year average air temperatures ranged from 5 degrees above average in the Northeast and Southeast to 1 degree below average at Kenton in the Panhandle. The majority of winter wheat and canola fields were in areas that came in at 1-2 degrees above average.

2017-02-02.Jan 2017 Avg Air Temp Continue reading →

2016 Monthly Air Temperature Review

What did you think of 2016? Was it a hot year? A cooler than average year? Would you believe that the summer was close to average?

Where the heat really came in was the spring and fall. Those were the seasons that climbed way above average.

For the year, 2016 was slightly warmer than the long-term 15-year Oklahoma Mesonet average from 2001-2015. Putnam and Minco were the warmest locations at 3 degrees above their average air temperatures. Most of the eastern side of Oklahoma was 2 degrees above average. In the west, most Mesonet sites were 1 degree above average.

2017-01-05.2016 Avg Air Temperature Continue reading →

Cattle Comfort Rollercoaster

Oklahoma’s weather roller coaster has opened for business. And on the farm, the cattle are feeling it. Warm, cold, warm, cold and how about a day of drizzle that turned to freezing rain with a biting wind (Thursday, Dec. 15, 2016).

2016-12-17.Cow in snow.face

Temperature weather variability has two sides. One side is the peak-to peak (amplitude) of the variability, how high or low temperatures go. The mornings of December 17th and 18th are going to be bitter cold with extreme lows. Continue reading →

October Warm Temps and Lack of Rain

October followed a warm September with above average temperatures. Unfortunately, what was below average in October were our rainfall totals.

Looking back at October, our average air temperatures for the month were 4 to 7 degrees above average. Northern and central sections of the state, the yellow-orange areas, had the largest departure from the Oklahoma Mesonet Long-term 15-year average (2001-2015).

2016-11-04.Oct 2016.Air Temp Avg departure Continue reading →

Summer Crop Heat Units in 2016

As July comes to an end in Oklahoma, farmers’ thoughts are jumping ahead to harvest. Farmers that planted corn, cotton and peanuts are thinking about the heat units those crops need to mature. They want their efforts to end in good yields and good quality. To check on crop maturity they can turn to the Oklahoma Mesonet Degree-day Heat Unit Calculator.

2016-07-28.AgBlog.No 01.Summer crops

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Working and Playing in the Heat

One of the weather risks that falls through the cracks of concern is heat stress. Maybe that’s because air conditioning is so prevalent in our homes, cars, and businesses. Maybe folks think Oklahoma’s a hot place and we should just tough it out. But heat can be a real risk, especially if you haven’t acclimated to the heat.

2016-06-14.Woman exercise red face
Source: Popsugar.com Health Jenny Sugar, March 17, 2016

When you go outside are you ready for the heat? Do you know how warm it will be? Can you work or play without risk? Do you have an idea as you grow older of how much heat stress you can take? Do you know when young kids should reduce outdoor activities? Do you let an outdoor task dictate how long you will work or do change your work or play time to the heat conditions? Continue reading →