Reporting environmental data can feel a lot like the “old days” in so many ways. Regardless of improvements in instrument technology, the data and reporting requirements don’t change. What has changed though is the potential to make the data flow automatically into your regular reporting. That’s right, flow. Automatically.
Meteorological station data remains one of the best tools for informing avalanche safety decisions. For recreationists and practitioners alike, everyone requires information specific to their plan for the day. But parsing through large station networks is often tedious, and information overload can actually limit the amount of information we internalize. Additionally, few recreationists understand the complexities at each station and looking at less than ideal data can be misleading.