Sunday, 25 January 2015 00:00

Weather apps limited – forecaster

Written by 

Farmers need to be aware of the possible limitations of international weather apps on their smartphones, says Phil Duncan of weatherwatch.co.nz.

While not discouraging farmers from using the apps, he says the problem is they lack any human input.

“So a farmer can get a lot of false hope from those apps which may say ‘80% chance of rain for four days’, but in fact you only get a drizzle patch or something,” Duncan explains. “So that’s where you need a New Zealand forecaster to come in and add local knowledge. 

Duncan says at present there is a touch of El Nino, which is helping to lift the air pressure around New Zealand and the Tasman Sea. Present patterns suggest New Zealand is heading for a ‘spring like westerly’ with  showers on the west coast and hot and dry and sunny conditions  on the east coast.  

www.weatherwatch.co.nz.

More like this

App eliminates tedious paperwork

A clever new app called HarvestYield is said to eliminate the tedious paper trail associated with job recording and worker timesheets, while also offering a suite of management tools.

Featured

Third H5 Bird Flu Case Found in NZ Wild Bird

Testing confirms H5 bird flu in a single northern giant petrel, found dead on a remote Cape Palliser beach in the Wairarapa, says Dr Mary van Andel, the Ministry for Primary Industries' (MPI) Chief Veterinary Officer.

National

Machinery & Products

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

'LinkedIn Greens'

OPINION: The same mainstream media muppets that brought you Jacindamania in 2017 have been flat out pimping for the Opportunities…

UK Warning

OPINION: Your old mate reckons the atrocious way farmers in the UK are treated by their lords and masters in…

» Connect with Rural News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter