Met Éireann in scramble to save amateur weather watchers’ network from shutdown

Wow, or the Weather Observations Website network, collects continuous readings from privately operated weather stations across Ireland and beyond. Met Éireann uses these observations as a supplement to its 25 official stations. They help fill local gaps and track weather events more closely.

The network includes stations run by individuals, schools, sports clubs and public bodies. Sean Rima, for example, compares readings from stations around west Galway, where conditions can vary sharply. Met Éireann can use Wow data to follow weather fronts, incoming severe weather and highly local conditions, although the data are not official because equipment varies.

The UK Met Office created and hosted Wow, but says its ageing technology can no longer be supported. The platform is due to close in December. Met Éireann is working with other European Union states on a replacement, cautiously targeting early 2027 while trying to reduce the gap between systems.

About 150 amateur weather watchers in Ireland contribute readings to Wow. Ireland has 25 official Met Éireann weather stations. That means Wow has roughly six times as many contributing stations, although the comparison is not exact because the networks differ in equipment, purpose and quality control.

The extra stations provide much denser local coverage. Sean Rima and other enthusiasts installed 10 stations around west Galway, including stations on Inishturk and Inishbofin. These locations help track conditions away from official stations at Mace Head and Galway city. A station can show rain, sunshine, wind or pressure in one place while nearby areas experience something different.

Wow readings are not official because the equipment varies too much for Met Éireann to quality-control them all. Even so, the network supplements the official system and fills coverage gaps. Met Éireann says both networks help improve forecasts, warnings and understanding of climate change.

When Wow closes, Met Éireann will lose a large stream of local observations that supplements its official network. The article does not say forecasts or warnings will stop, but it indicates that Wow supports better forecasts, more accurate warnings and deeper understanding of changing climate. Losing it could therefore reduce the detailed information available for those tasks.

Local readings are especially useful during a weather event. Met Éireann can consult them to check a weather front’s progress or monitor incoming severe weather. Stations also reveal differences between exposed areas, hillsides and valleys. Without those extra observations, some short-distance changes may be harder to see in real time.

The data will not automatically transfer to the replacement platform. Met Éireann is working with other European Union states and cautiously looking at early 2027 for a start. Until then, there may be downtime, while archived observations could also be lost unless contributors download them.

Connemara’s landscape makes weather highly localised. The region contains hills, lakes and valleys, and Atlantic weather systems move across them quickly. Exposure, elevation and shelter can all change the conditions at a particular spot. As a result, “four seasons in one day” may still understate the variety.

Sean Rima sees this directly. He can view data from the Clifden station, less than 20 kilometres from his home in Renvyle, showing pouring rain while his window shows bright sunshine. Rima and other enthusiasts use 10 stations around west Galway to follow these movements, including stations on Inishturk and Inishbofin.

The mechanism is therefore both atmospheric and geographic: weather fronts move across uneven terrain, while each location responds differently to exposure and elevation. Noel Fitzpatrick says substantial variability can occur even over short distances. Local stations capture that variation better than a widely spaced official network alone.

Privately operated stations are useful because Ireland’s weather varies greatly over short distances. Met Éireann has 25 official stations, but amateur stations add observations from places between them, including hills, valleys, islands and exposed coastlines. This creates a finer picture of current conditions and past weather.

Their value is practical as well as scientific. Met Éireann can consult Wow readings during a particular weather event, checking a front’s progress or incoming severe weather. Sean Rima uses local stations and drone photographs before going out. PJ Naughter watched pressure waves from the 2022 Tonga volcano eruption approach Ireland through online data.

The readings are not official because contributors use many kinds of equipment, making full quality control impossible. Still, Met Éireann says the data fill gaps and improve understanding of local variability. They also give residents a way to compare official forecasts with conditions in their own area.

Met Éireann is working with other European Union states to develop a replacement for Wow. The goal is to preserve a platform for private observations after the UK Met Office ends support for its ageing system. Met Éireann is cautiously targeting early 2027 and wants to minimise downtime between the two systems.

The replacement will not automatically receive the old Wow data. That means historical records stored on the current site may not carry across. The site includes a map showing current and past conditions, with some records extending back several years. Measurements can include temperature, humidity, rainfall, pressure, wind and soil temperature.

Met Éireann is encouraging anyone who wants to preserve older observations to download them before the network shuts down. They can save the information in graph or table form. This protects personal records and keeps valuable local evidence available while the new platform is being developed.

Measurements provide the raw evidence for understanding current atmospheric conditions. Temperature, pressure, rainfall, humidity and wind describe what is happening at particular places. Comparing those readings across stations and over time helps forecasters identify changes, such as a moving front or developing severe weather. This explanation uses established meteorological practice; the article focuses on the network’s role rather than every technical step.

Wow gives Met Éireann extra observations to compare with its official stations. During an event, officials can check a front’s progress or incoming severe weather. PJ Naughter also saw pressure waves from the 2022 Tonga eruption moving toward Ireland by watching station data in real time.

Forecasters combine these observations with other information to produce forecasts and warnings. More local readings can reveal conditions that a widely spaced network misses. The article says Wow contributes to better forecasts and more accurate warnings, but it does not claim that private readings alone determine them.