Weather Station

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The weather station is a space on top of the roof of the observatory building. In the past it was used for observing the changes in the weather.

View on Bidston Observatory weatherstation, seen from the hillside

"In 1992 Bidston's weather station finally succumbed to the inevitable and became automatic. It was no longer considered viable to have staff attending every day of the year to observe the weather, particularly as the national trend was now towards long holidays at Christmas and New Year."[1]

"Unfortunately observations of cloud and visibility fell victim to the new system, as at that time there were no instruments available which would have satisfied our requirement. It would have been difficult to continue observing visibility in any case, as the view from the Observatory roof was now being obscured by the tall trees. These were protected by law and could not be pruned."[1]

The instruments are mostly removed from the space, although a rusty leftover device of its instrumental past is still in place. A metal wind measure and some more contemporary electronic looking observation devices are still attached to the mast on top of the boot. The station as a space serves as an instrument for artistic experimentation.

  1. 1.0 1.1 Bidston Observatory, the place and the people, Joyce Scoffield