RAINFALL RESCUE

Bored of self-isolation? Weather researchers are calling for your help
By Jake Hall | Current affairs | 26 March 2020

Top image: Taken from The HERO Winter Annual 19. Photography Fabien Kruszelnicki, Fashion Paul Sinclaire.

We’ve all got our self-isolation to-do lists, but it’s likely you’ve never thought about filing through historical weather records and transferring them online – because why would you?

Well, according to the Rainfall Rescue Project, there are several reasons. At the moment, statistics only comprehensively date back to 1961, which is a problem: researchers and water companies need extensive data in order to understand natural weather fluctuations, and plan for extremely wet or extremely dry periods. Right now, they don’t have enough, so they’re calling on volunteers to fight their lockdown boredom by digitising historical records. (Don’t worry, they’ve all been scanned!)

There’s also a climate crisis to consider. According to the project researchers, these missing records were taken “before the world started to warm rapidly, so these old measurements provide a baseline from which to measure any changes to the weather.” It could also help to differentiate between natural and unnatural fluctuations – or in other words, to better understand the impact our society is having on the planet.

In terms of time, the commitment is minimal – but let’s be real, there’s never been a better time to keep yourself busy and help a few struggling researchers in the process.

Records can be found and transcribed at the Rainfall Rescue Project website.

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