The University of Toronto at Mississauga Meteorological Station ( UTMMS )

The University of Toronto at Mississauga Meteorological Station ( UTMMS )

T-Space Data Explanation.

Introduction

The campus of the University of Toronto at Mississauga (also know as Erindale College) is centrally located in the City of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. The City of Mississauga is on the western border of the City of Toronto.

The northern half of the 100 hectare campus is comprised of mixed deciduous forest and open parkland, and it is in this part of the campus that UTMMS is located (430 33’ North Latitude, 790 40’ West Longitude). The southern half of the campus is comprised of several large school buildings, student residences, parking lots, urban open space and parkland.

Instrumentation

The weather data here are collected to a Campbell Scientific model CR10 datalogger. Temperature and Relative Humidity data are collected using a Vaisala HMP-35C sensor. The unit of measure for temperature is degrees Celsius. The unit of measure of Relative Humidity is percent. Precipitation is collected in a standard tipping bucket rain gauge distributed by Environment Canada. The unit of measure is the millimeter. During winter periods, a heat source is applied to the rain gauge. An Alter-type wind shield is installed around the rain gauge. Wind speed and direction are monitored using an R. M. Young model 05305AQ wind vane mounted atop a 15 metre tower. The unit of measure of wind speed is kilometers per hour and wind direction is shown in degrees (where 0/360 represents True North). Incoming short wave solar radiation is collected using a Kipp & Zonen model CM 11 solarimeter. The unit of measure for incoming radiation is millivolts. The calibration constant for this solarimeter is 77.276 Watts per square metre per millivolt .

Data Presentation

Data are presented here on an hourly basis for each month of the year. The beginning and ending days of each monthly file may not correspond exactly with the first and last day of the month shown. You should be aware of which Julian days correspond with the specific dates you are interested in studying, in the specific year you are studying (remember which years are leap years).

The hourly data shows a second entry for 2400 hours. This second entry shows the average value for the day of Temperature, Wind Speed, Wind Direction and Solar Radiation. For Precipitation, the second entry shows the total amount for the day. The value for Relative humidity shows a repeat of the first 2400 hour entry. It does NOT show an average value of RH.

There have been times when our instruments have unexpectedly failed to operate and as a result, some or all of the data for that period may have been lost.

Disclaimer

We make every reasonable effort to maintain the accuracy and calibration of our sensors but we cannot guarantee the accuracy of all of our data.