Weather Station Found on Library Roof Thought to Be Six Years Old
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Roofers repairing storm damage in Harwick have found a homemade device that has quietly been measuring the town's weather for years. Residents think they know who built it.
A homemade weather station discovered on the roof of the Harwick Public Library on Monday is believed to have been sending data to a private website every ten minutes for six years, library officials said.
The device, roughly the size of a shoebox, was found by roofers repairing storm damage. It is powered by a small solar panel and is thought to have survived at least five winters without any maintenance.
'Nobody here knew it existed,' said Ellen Marsh, the library's facilities manager. 'It was tucked behind the chimney, wired neatly and labelled in pencil. Whoever built it clearly expected it to last.'
The station is reported to have recorded more than 300,000 measurements of temperature, rainfall and wind speed. Its data feeds a simple website that, according to its own visitor counter, has been viewed fewer than 900 times.
Local residents have been quick to name a suspect. The builder is widely said to be Arthur Penn, 81, a retired physics teacher who lived opposite the library until he moved into a care home last year. Mr Penn could not be reached for comment, but his daughter, Joan, said her father 'always complained that the official forecasts never got Harwick right.'
Scientists at the regional university, who examined the data this week, described the readings as surprisingly accurate. The records are now expected to be used in a study of how heavy rain affects small river towns.
The town council said it would leave the device where it is. A small sign reading 'Please do not disturb' is to be fixed to the chimney next month.