Record Weather Data with Arduino and Solar Power - (Maker Innovations) by Chunyan Li (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Make a stand-alone weather data recorder to collect air pressure, air temperature, and humidity data using only an Arduino, SD-card, LCD display, and solar power. Start with that base data. Then easily extend your project to include more such as an XBee radio and sensors for air quality and radiation. Chunyin has years of experience as a researcher in meteorology and oceanography. The projects in this book are based on actual deployable weather data recorders used for collegiate and professional applications. These weather recorders were deployed over coastal water and lands including the Arctic. And you can deploy your own finished model in your backyard, school yard, roof top, or even in the field to collect data at programmed intervals.

Don't worry about powering all that tech. You'll learn about solar controller, solar panels, and step-down DC transformers. You'll also make a 30-60 W solor powered battery charger for a 12-VDC battery. Find out whathappens when you combine a simple Arduino with sensors one at a time toward a final model capable of multiple measurements and a longlife of use without recharging or requiring external power. Then add a GPS module so that you constantly have accurate time and position information to pair with your data.

Everything you need to know to integrate component and house them in an enclosure is covered. Photos of actual working units are provided, showing you exactly what your data collection station can look like. You'll even go a step beyond to understanding meteorology information and how to use the collected data, as well as some data analysis. Build a station capable of real meteorological research and then go beyond to add more sensors and capabilities for your own projects and experiments!

What You'll Learn

• Measure air pressure, temperature, humidity and more!
  
• Add an XBee radio and LCD display to a data recording project for interactivity and communication
  
• Work with basic meteorological principles to understand how your data can be used
  

Who This Book Is For

Meteorological hobbyists, Makers, and students interested in learning how to collect and analyze data with low-cost hardware.

From the Back Cover

Make a stand-alone weather data recorder to collect air pressure, air temperature, and humidity data using only an Arduino, SD card, LCD display, and solar power. Start with this base data and build your project from there. Chunyan has years of experience as a researcher in meteorology and oceanography. The projects in this book are based on actual deployable weather data recorders used for collegiate and professional applications. These weather recorders were deployed over coastal waters and lands, including the Arctic. And you can deploy your own finished model in your backyard, schoolyard, rooftop, or even in the field to collect data at programmed intervals.

Don't worry about powering all that tech. You'll learn about solar controllers, solar panels, and step-down DC transformers. Find out what happens when you combine a simple Arduino with sensors, one at a time, toward a final model capable of multiple measurements and long-term use without recharging or requiring external power. With a GPS module integrated into the system, you can have accurate time and position information to pair with your data.

Everything you need to know about integrating components and housing them in an enclosure is covered. Photos of actual working units are provided, showing you exactly what your data collection station can look like. By accessing the supplemental materials on the book's GitHub pages, you'll even go a step beyond to learn more meteorological information, how to use the collected data, and how to analyze it. Build a station capable of real meteorological research and then expand to add more sensors and capabilities for your own projects and experiments!

About the Author

​Chunyan Li is a professor teaching in oceanography and meteorology at Louisiana State University. He has made dozens of weather recorder units powered by battery or solar panels for research projects and student projects. He has published more than 120 scientific research papers, coauthored a book titled Meteorology for Coastal Scientists and authored another book titled Time Series Analysis for Oceanography. He is also the director of an offshore meteorology oceanography observation system for weather, wave, tide, currents, and storm surges. His research includes theories of coastal and estuarine dynamics under the influence of tide, river, and weather, as well as impacts of climate change to the Arctic coastal ocean.