This builds on the success of the previous ATMOS 41 but it has been largely redesigned and much improved. The new ATMOS 41W is a research-grade instrument that provides advantages for applications ranging from microenvironment monitoring and spatially distributed environmental measurements, through to crop weather monitoring and weather forecasting.

Setting up the ATMOS 41W takes 10 minutes or less because it only needs to be mounted on a post and orientated to face north. There is no programming, no configuration, no managing a connection to a service provider, no calibration and no requirement to run a cable to a data logger. It simply works straight out of the box, sending near-real-time data to the cloud. If transmissions are interrupted for any reason, the ATMOS 41W has an integral data logger to prevent measurements from being lost.

Many of the improvements made to the ATMOS 41W have been for compliance with international meteorology standards, but they also benefit users due to the higher-quality data and reduced measurement interval of three seconds. The all-in-one weather station measures 10 environmental variables: solar radiation, precipitation, electrical conductivity of the precipitation, air temperature (minimum, maximum and average), barometric pressure, vapour pressure, relative humidity, wind speed, wind direction and maximum wind gust. In addition, the instrument has a tilt sensor, so the user is notified if the instrument is no longer level.

Precipitation measurements, in particular, have been improved by means of a dual-technology drop counter and tipping spoon. Furthermore, by measuring the electrical conductivity of the precipitation, users can infer whether they are measuring rainwater or irrigation water, or if the funnel contains bird droppings.

Other new and improved features include aerodynamic support struts, a convex base plate to shed rainwater, twin solar panels facing east and west, and an adjustable levelling bracket.

METER's engineers designed the ATMOS 41W to be compatible with the company's ZENTRA Cloud system. The new weather station therefore connects via a 3G or 4G mobile phone signal to transmit data to the ZENTRA Cloud, so users can view, share and manage data from anywhere in the world, on any device. There is also an option to route data to a customer's server for access via an API.

With its rugged construction, wireless data transfer, integral solar panels and solid-state anemometer, the ATMOS 41W weather station operates for long periods without maintenance. Consequently, the total cost of ownership is extremely low for such a high-quality weather station.

Labcell is the UK distributor for the METER range of instrumentation. Download detailed data sheets directly from Labcell's website at www.labcell.com or contact the company with specific enquiries or to request a demonstration by telephone on +44 (0)1420 568150 or email mail@labcell.com.