Preliminary Results of Measurements Obtained from a Low-Cost Arduino-Based Surface Weather Data Acquisition System for Radio Meteorology
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Date
2021
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Journal of Physics: Conference Series. IOP Publishing
Abstract
Surface weather monitoring is crucial for radio meteorology, agricultural,
communication, and industrial processes. However, there is a dearth of weather data in Ede,
Osun State, Nigeria (Lat 7.736º N, Lon 4.435º E). The proposed weather monitoring system
used the Arduino Mega2560 microcontroller to measure, record and display the atmospheric
parameters. Analog sensors for pressure, temperature, relative humidity, and wind speed were
interfaced with the microcontroller through an ADC for digital signal conversion and data
logging. An LCD connected to the microcontroller displays the measured parameters. The
weather data were stored in excel format on a microSD card. The data were compared with that
of a nearby weather station. The plots showed a close agreement with the data collected from
the nearby station. The system eliminates the need for extra cost baud rate and expensive thirdparty
software for interfacing. Besides, there is no need for an internet connection for
configuration. Hence, this data acquisition system (DAS) could be a better choice in cost and
maintenance than the off-the-shelf weather stations. The DAS was programmed to derive the
surface radio refractivity from the meteorological parameters and the corresponding radio
refractivity gradients over Ede.