Best Weather Site

[Bob_In_MN]

Hi All,

I'm sure there has to be some amateur meteorologists out there. Does anyone have an opinion on the most accurate weather site? I'm specifically looking for wind direction and speed and need to have a prediction for this coming Saturday.

I've used accuweather and a local TV station site. Both are stating the same thing, but accuweather has been wrong before.

Thanks in advance.

Bob

 

[BillG_in_TX]

Bob,

I always fall back on Intellicast. They have lots of information available by zip code. I don't know where Oak Grove is, but here is their wind forecast for St. Paul for Saturday morning.

 

[Bird]

My favorite is the National Weather Service. Here is the Southern Region, but you can go to anywhere in the country just by clicking on the map.

 

[Gary_in_Indiana]

Bob,

I'm no meteorology buff, but I might suggest you take a look at wunderground.com on the net. I've never looked specifically for wind but I'm sure they have it there. I'm just curious with this but are you a balloonist?

 

[EarPlug]

I like Weather Underground for most weather lookups.

Jack

 

[Bob_In_MN]

Bill, Bird, Gary and Jack,

Thanks for the replies. All sites are saying close to the same thing which suggests there is some certainty in the prediction.

Gary--regarding your question--no, I'm not a balloonist.

Minnesota (and Wisconsin) are somewhat unique in that we have a great number of lakes and as a result, an even greater number of docks (called piers in Wisconsin). Since all of our lakes freeze in the winter, the docks (and boat lifts) need to be removed every fall and reinstalled every spring.

I own a company that intalls and removes a special type of dock that does not require us to get into the water. The upside is we don't get wet and can do a lot of work in a day. In addition, the docks are expensive and complicated enough (some of it's just plain hard work) that owners don't want to deal with them every season. The downside of this type of set-up is that a large lake with rough water can actually be unworkable.

I'm sending a crew to the north eastern part of MN and I am taking a crew to the north central part of the state. The lake we are heading to is one of the lakes that can get downright nasty and once you drive up there, you've committed yourself as the season is short and doesn't allow for second trips. So--when I plan the jobs that are 3-4 hours away, I look for the right wind speed and/or direction.

I'm planning on taking some pics on one of the next trips. I'll post a few to show the process. Fall is easier than spring as the intallation requires us to pound the posts into the lake bed whereas in the fall we just jack the posts out.

Bob

 

[WVBill]

I agree with Bird - and if you are a Meteorology buff, find the Forecast Discussions section of your region. This is where the NWS forecaster documents his/her reasoning behind their forecast. Example here

 

[fivestring]

Meteorology: the study (science) of guessing the weather. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Bird]

Bob, I guess you know that I got the information and started using that site at the suggestion of one of our members, Mikim, who is an employee of the National Weather Service.

 

[Inspector507]

I use Accuweather
It gives you by the hour forecasts and seems pretty accurate.