Saint Patrick to Install Weatherbug Weather station
April 28, 2008

Saint Patrick High School will install a WeatherBug weather station on the roof of the school in the near future. WeatherBug is an interactive professional-grade weather station, which collects 27 different meteorological data items in real time and features a 340-degree adjustable camera streaming into the school, the web and local weather stations.

The WeatherBug equipment not only provides a plethora of statistical data for students to analyze, but it comes with a curriculum full of suggestions to help optimize the integration of the technology. Saint Patrick is slated to begin a new course in Earth and Space Science next fall and the Science Department is focusing their energy on improving the graphical analysis skills of their students. WeatherBug, which records things like temperature, wind chill, heat index, dew point, barometric pressure, wind direction, wind speed, and tracks precipitation, provides the ideal instrument.

WeatherBug works in conjunction with WGN to broadcast local weather from participating schools, providing publicity for the schools and strengthening connections with the community. Tom Skilling, the popular WGN meteorologist, uses data from WeatherBug stations in his daily weather reports on WGN’s News at Noon and Nine O’clock News.

Funding for the purchase and installation of the WeatherBug will be covered by a generous grant from the Helen Brach Foundation.