About This Station - About This Website - About Colorado Springs

About This Station

StetsonWeather.com went online in February 2010 (although I started collecting data in December of 2009). The station is powered by a Zephry PWS-1000TD weather station. The station comprises an array of sensors including an anemometer (wind), rain gauge, and thermo-hygro sensor. The temperature and humidity sensors are housed in a SRS100LX radiation shield to protect against solar radiation and other sources of radiated and reflected heat. The data is collected from the sensors every 48 seconds and the website is updated from every 30 seconds to every 5 minutes depending on the data and the page. My location is somewhat different than others around the city because I back up to Sand Creek, creating some interesting weather patterns. This station also participates in the Citizens Weather Observer Program (CWOP) as Station ID DW4524. We strive to have the most accurate data but along the Front Range it can be very difficult. It can be snowing in one location and a mile in another direction sunny. You can find the summary of my CWOP data here.

About This Website

This website is owned and maintained by a me as a hobby more than anything. The Zephyr weather station console receives data from the various sensors. The console is then connected to a Dell Optiplex 620 computer with a 2.13Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor and 4GB of RAM running Windows XP Professional. A software program called Weather Display captures all the data and then in turn uploads the information to the web site (hosted by E-Rice).

This site is based on a template design by CarterLake.org. Special thanks go to Kevin Reed at TNET Weather Ken True at Saratoga Weather for sharing their knowledge of PHP, AJAX and various other features that this site uses. Significant knowledge and troubleshooting help has also been gained from the awesome users on the Weather Watch forums.

About Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs was founded on July 31, 1871 by General William Palmer, with the intention of creating a high-quality resort community, and was soon nicknamed "Little London" because of the many English tourists who came. Nearby Pikes Peak and the Garden of the Gods made the city's location a natural choice.

Within two years his flagship resort the Antlers Hotel opened, welcoming U.S. and international travelers as well as health-savvy individuals seeking the high altitude and dry climate, and Palmer's visions of a thriving, quality resort town were coming true. Soon after, he founded the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, a critical regional railroad. He maintained his presence in the city's early days by making many grants or sales of land to civic institutions. Palmer and his wife saw Colorado Springs develop into one of the most popular travel destinations in the late 1800s United States.

There are over 300 days of sunshine to be enjoyed in Colorado Springs annually. At an altitude of 6,035 feet, the climate of Colorado Springs and the Pikes Peak region is warm in the summer and moderate in the spring, fall and winter. Classified as an "alpine desert," the dry, clean air was once a destination to heal tuberculosis patients. Today, visitors enjoy the climate because it allows for year-round outdoor recreation. Summers are dry with temperatures in the 80s to mid 90s, with cool nights in the 60s. Spring and fall temperatures range from the mid 50s to the low 70s and winters here can be white, but normally the snow that does fall melts quickly and reveals a sunny sky again. Winter temperatures range from the low 30s to upper 40s.

Colorado Springs is located 61 miles south of Denver near the base of one of the most famous mountains in the U.S.: Pikes Peak. As of the 2010 census, our population was 410,427 in the city proper, adding the rest of the metro area we are at 645,613. Basic elevation is 6035 feet but can vary widely, this station is at 6619 feet. Colorado Springs is the 41st most populus city in the US, we are home to the United States Air Force Academy, US Northern Command and Air Force Space Command (Peterson and Schriever AFB), Fort Carson Army Base as well as a number of other military installations. We are also home to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo which is the highest zoo in the U.S. (elevation wise)