Montco PSU Extension Teaches Class on the Science of Rain Gathering

The Montgomery County Penn State Cooperative Extension and 4H Center will hold a Cocorahs Weather Observation Class, April 27, starting at 10:30 a.m.

The class will take place at the 4H Center, located at 1015 Bridge Road, Suite H in Collegeville.

Cocorahs, which stands for Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network, and, according to its website, is “a nonprofit, community-based network of volunteers of all ages and backgrounds, working together to measure and map precipitation.”

“It’s another excellent program for schools,” Linda Hoade, Montgomery County 4H Edcuational Outreach coordinator, said. “It’s live and complements their weather units, because it’s real time.”

Hoade has been the Cocorahs southeastern coordinator for nearly a decade. She said that there are nearly 200 volunteers from both schools groups and from the general public that currently participate in her district.

Each volunteer and volunteer group uses a special water gauge, either given through the class, purchased on their own or through the Cocorahs network, and measures precipitation throughout the year. The measurements are submitted to the national Cocorahs network, from which a highly accurate precipitation map and history can be made.

Accordingt o Hoade, such measurements are used by academic institutions all over the country (Cocorahs is in all 50 states); by FEMA and insurance companies in times of extreme weather; and by farmers and operators of large gardens in times of drought.

For student groups, Hoade said that it helps teach them data collection and observation.

The Cocorahs class is free and open to the public, but registration is required at 610-489-4315.

For more information about Cocorahs, visit the website.