ASOS myopically reports conditions when unattended. It won’t spew out random observations, but it can’t be counted on for an accurate and complete picture in all situations.
The ASOS blind spot
Key Takeaways:
- ASOS frequently provides an incomplete or inaccurate weather picture, failing to report conditions outside its immediate sensor array, misidentifying precipitation types (e.g., snow over freezing rain), or omitting critical phenomena like drizzle.
- While some Automated Weather Observing Systems (AWOS) report drizzle, their less stringent specifications mean these reports, especially for freezing precipitation, might be inaccurate or based solely on temperature without actual accretion sensors.
- ASOS has a "lockout period" each hour (47:20 to 53:20 past the hour) during which it cannot issue urgent special weather reports (SPECIs), potentially withholding critical, rapidly changing weather information.
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