The ability to measure rainfall is important for many industries. So, it is not surprising that the rain gauge (rain gauge) was one of the first weather instruments invented by our ancestors. The tool is believed to have been used in India since 2,000 years ago. Their rainfall measurements help farmers make decisions about when to plant, harvest and irrigate crops; the measurement results also enable engineers to design effective rainwater drainage, bridges and various structures. Although today most professional rain gauges use electronic systems, anyone can assemble their own rain gauge to measure the rainfall in their neighborhood.
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Part 1 of 2: Assembling the Rain Gauge
Step 1. Find a cylindrical container (tube)
The cylindrical container can be made of glass or plastic, and should have a minimum height of 30.48 cm. The shape of the container is important to fulfill. Because if the top of the tube is wider than the bottom (or narrower) later it will require more calculations and measurements.
It doesn't really matter how wide the container is, as long as all the parts (from top to bottom) are the same diameter. If the volume of the container increases, it is assumed, from the size of a water bottle to a mop bucket, the rainwater collection area will also increase. Because of this, one inch (2.54 cm/25.4 mm) of rainfall will be consistently recorded between different tube sizes
Step 2. Make a rain gauge container
If you don't have a canister, you can make an equally effective rain gauge using a 2 liter soda (or other soft drink) bottle with minimal effort. Cut the top of the bottle about 10.16 cm with the help of scissors or a knife. Don't worry about the uneven bottom of the bottle. This will be addressed in the following steps.
Step 3. Use gravel/coral as ballast for the rain gauge
Since the rain will often be accompanied by wind, you will need to make the rain gauge stand firmly so that it can stand upright when blown by the wind/storm. Fill the bottom of the jar with gravel/coral or marbles, but not higher than 2.54 cm. After inserting the ballast, you must fill the rain gauge with water to produce a surface starting point for the rain gauge scale. The ballast will take up a certain volume. Thus, we do not need to include it in the measurement.
- Stones or marbles: any object that is relatively heavy and small, as long as it does not absorb water.
- If you are building your own rain gauge with a soda (or other soft drink) bottle, make sure the entire bottom of the bottle (the four separate borders at the bottom) is filled with water and stones to get a flat starting point for the measuring scale.
- As an alternative, instead of putting the pebbles/coral in the rain gauge, you can put the device in a sturdy container, such as a heavy bucket or flowerpot.
Step 4. Write the scale on the surface of the bottle
Scaling can be done with a waterproof marker. Stick a ruler or measuring tape (meter) on the surface of the bottle, and make the zero mark on the ruler meet/line up with the surface of the water in the bottle. The zero scale must be on the water level.
If you decide to remove the pebbles/coral and want to put the rain gauge into the flower pot, you will no longer need to put water in the rain gauge. In this case, the zero scale will be at the bottom of the bottle
Step 5. Place the rain gauge out in the open, on a flat surface
You need to place the tool on a flat surface to minimize the chance of the rain gauge falling over and over. Make sure that there are no obstructions above the rain gauge, such as trees or lisplang, as these obstructions will interfere with the measurement.
Part 2 of 2: Measuring Rainfall
Step 1. Check the rain gauge daily
To determine how much rain has fallen in the previous 24 hours, you need to check the rain gauge every 24 hours! Read the tool by looking at the water line that is straight/parallel to eye level (normal vision). The surface of the waterline will be curved; This is a symptom of the meniscus (a phenomenon where the surface of the liquid in a tube curves), which is formed when water comes into contact with the container and creates surface tension. You should take readings from the lowest part of the curve of the water surface.
Rain gauge checks should be carried out every day, even if it is not raining. You can lose water due to evaporation, or mysteriously appear bottled water without any rain (usually caused by sprinklers). For this last condition, the rain gauge may have to be moved to a new location
Step 2. Mark the amount of rainfall on a graph or chart
For example, you can make a chart measuring 17.78 x 17.78 cm, write the date/day of the week on the x-axis and scale 2.5 cm to 17.8 cm along the y-axis. Mark the intersection point at each appropriate meeting between the rainfall scale (in cm) and the day of the week. Next, use a ruler to connect all the intersections and see the fluctuations (downs and downs) of rainfall over the course of a week.
Step 3. Empty the rain gauge
Each time you finish taking notes, you should empty the rain gauge to ensure an accurate reading. Make sure you keep the rock in the rain gauge, and refill the water to zero before you put the device back in its original place.
Step 4. Calculate the average value
After recording data for a month, you can analyze the data and see the overall trend of rainfall. Adding up the rainfall for 7 days of the week, and then dividing by 7, will give you the average rainfall for the week. After a certain period of time, you can perform calculations for a period of one month (or even a year, if you really do it for a specific task/purpose).
