Horizon point weather advisory program

Horizon Point is a web-based program developed at the University of Missouri that delivers site-specific processed weather information in the form of management advisories to farmers via their e-mail address. When farmers signup, they provide the exact latitude and longitude for which they want to receive a report. By supplying their email address, it gets delivered directly to them free of charge.

Missouri producers, and others, are provided with historical and forecasted weather information using gridded data from the National Weather Service and merging it with raw data available from the Extension Commercial Agriculture Automated Weather Station Network. We provide customized weather analyses and agricultural products specific to their latitude/longitude and farm characteristics. At the end of 2010, over 500 Missouri locations were enrolled to receive Horizon Point reports.

The basic weather information contained in a Horizon Point report includes rainfall amounts and probability, maximum and minimum daily temperatures, soil temperatures at various depths, and wind speed and direction forecasts in 3-hour increments. Horizon Point's weather advisories cover crop and grain management, pest management and livestock management.

The author will discuss products associated with Horizon Point and how the information can be used by crop producers and others in their management decisions. For more information, please visit www.agebb.missouri.edu/horizonpoint.