Digital Tool Uses Algorithms To Detect Freeze Events Days In Advance
The sun is shining, but meteorologists agree we’re not out of the woods for a freeze just yet. Fortunately for producers, there’s a new tool to give farmers a heads up 60 hours prior to a freeze event, Innovation Weather.
This tool, developed by four Penn State students, uses algorithms to analyze street level data visualizations on Google Maps to determine the greatest probability of frost for the entire night, their website explains.
The creators say the new tool allows farmers to easily see which of their fields would fall into the frost zone overnight. The Innovation Weather suite of tools aggregate the data and plot it over Google Maps to provide a quick and interactive user experience.
“Additional layers can be overlaid on the map, including the location and density of different crops, including wheat, corn, and various fruits and vegetables, as well as client specified locations of interest,” the creators say. “In this way, it is possible to view the impacts that weather will have on specific crops with the click of a button.”
The tools also allow users to set specific locations and monitor the number of hours those locations are below a user-specified threshold temperature.
For more information about the products and tools offered by Innovation Weather, visit their website.
