What's the Weather in Your Backyard?

When hearing the rainfall amount from the official gage, have you ever said, "That's not what I got!"

Now you can let us know how much rain, hail, and snow you've measured in your backyard by joining the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail, and Snow Network - CoCoRaHS. CoCoRaHS was launched across Oregon in December of 2007, and has been up and running in Idaho since January 1st of this year! This new program will help meteorologists, researchers, the media, and others see and study the variability of precipitation across Oregon and Idaho. Last but not least, the precipitation data from the CoCoRaHs network is available to anyone with internet access!

What is CoCoRaHS?
CoCoRaHS is an unique, non-profit, community-based network of volunteers of all ages and backgrounds, working together to measure and map precipitation. By using low-cost measurement tools, emphasizing training and education, and utilizing an interactive website (www.cocorahs.org), our aim is to provide the highest quality data for natural resource, education, and research applications.

Why is CoCoRaHS important?
Precipitation is essential for life. As most of us know, it can vary greatly with location, topography, storm type, and season. It really can downpour on one side of the street and be dry on the other! The same can be said of snow and hail, in which the amount of precipitation that falls can vary greatly over short distances, especially in mountainous terrain. Meteorologists, engineers, hydrologists, insurance experts, and many others are interested in precipitation data, and you can help by reporting through CoCoRaHs.

Local Volunteer Coordinators and Observers are Needed Now
To help this network grow across Oregon and Idaho, we will need both coordinators and observers across both Oregon and Idaho. The primary duties of a volunteer coordinator will be to help answer new observer questions, help recruit new observers, and help with training beyond the information available on the CoCoRaHS website. Other volunteer coordinator duties, along with answers to frequently asked questions, can be found by searching through the tabs on the CoCoRaHS main webpage.

How can I join?
Visit the CoCoRaHS web site at: http://www.cocorahs.org to learn more about the program. You may sign up through the CoCoRaHs website if you would like to be an observer. If you're interested in being a volunteer coordinator for your local area, please contact our office by sending an email, via the webmaster email address.

Thank you for your interest in CoCoRaHS - Because Every Drop Counts!