Climate Reference Network Instruments Operational at Blue Hill Observatory

Climate Reference Network (CRN) instruments on the summit of Great Blue Hill in Milton, MA adjacent to the Blue Hill Observatory.

CRN temperature sensors at Blue Hill Observatory.

After many years of planning and site preparation, NOAA has installed a full suite of Climate Reference Network (CRN) instruments on the summit of Great Blue Hill in the clearing to the west of the Observatory. The automated instruments at BHO, which became operational on 18 September 2024, include duplicate sensors for air temperature, precipitation, relative humidity, wind speed, solar radiation, ground temperature, soil moisture, and soil temperature. The BHO CRN data will be archived over time, and they are transmitted in near real-time (about a one-hour delay) on the NOAA USCRN website.

The US Climate Reference Network is a sustained network of about 140 climate monitoring stations in the contiguous United States, Alaska, and Hawaii many of which have been operating for over twenty years. These stations use high-quality instruments that are designed to provide continuous and accurate climate monitoring across the country.