Low-Cost Meteorology Sensor Package Observations of a Tornadic Supercell Thunderstorm

Reliable measurements of meteorological variables such as temperature, pressure, humidity, and even lightning activity are essential to public awareness and safety. There is a growing community of scientists, research students, science enthusiasts, and K-12 STEM students who are developing and testing low-cost sensors that are capable of not only sharing this information publicly but also validation with standardized ground- and space-based platforms. This study presents the findings from a sensor package consisting of (a) a mini meteorology station and (b) a long range sferics detector. The package was inadvertenly and fortuitously placed in the direct path of a tornadic supercell in the Texas Panhandle region in early May 2018. Several funnels were spotted before one eventually touched down within 2 km of the sensor package. The pressure sensor recorded a decrease in atmospheric pressure (~8 mb in 5 hours) as a dry line approached from the west. It also recorded a sharp decrease in atmospheric pressure (~2 mb in 5 minutes) as a tornado developed nearby and passed to the northeast. A temperature decrease of nearly 10ºC was recorded by the temperature sensor as a result of heavy precipitation. A nearby ASOS (Vernon-Wilbarger County Airport) provided ground-truth prior to the storm and had good agreement with the temperature, pressure, and humidity sensor measurements before it was disabled due to strong winds. NEXRAD reflectivity imagery showed a hook echo passing nearly directly over the location of the sensor package and local storm spotters confirmed the possible tornado on social media. The sferics detector showed a “jump” in electrical activity as the supercell passed over the sensor package (NEXRAD-indicated). Hence, numerous opportunities exist for future projects that seek to develop a network of low-cost, battery operated portable sensor packages similar to the ones used in this study. This in turn will increase public awareness and safety especially during episodes of power loss and communication disruption.