Temperature

Air Temperature - The measurement of the heat content of the air.  A thermometer that measures air temperature is always placed in a shady location so that direct sunlight will not influence the measurement.

'Feels Like' Temperature - The THW index uses temperature, humidity, and wind to calculate this temperature which is comparable to the Heat Index in summer or the Wind Chill Index in winter.  Heat index uses temperature and relative humidity to determine how hot the air actually 'feels'.  When the humidity is high, the apparent temperature 'feels' higher than the actual air temperature because perspiration evaporates more slowly. Wind chill takes into account how the speed of the wind affects our perception of air temperature. If there’s no air movement, the insulating layer of warm air molecules around your body offers some protection from cooler air molecules. Wind disperses this layer of warm air causing the air temperature to 'feel' colder. The faster the wind blows, the quicker the layer of warm air is dispersed, and the colder you feel.
Lake Water Temperature - Water temperature at approximately 3 foot depth.  This depth up to the surface is considered the 'swimming' layer. The water temperature is measured beneath a boat dock in the shade so that sun shining on the water will not influence the accuracy of the measurement.

High Today - High temperature since midnight and time of high.

Low Today - Low temperature since midnight and time of low.

Wind

Speed - The natural movement of Earth's air in a horizontal motion.  This motion is measured by an anemometer.

Gust - Peak wind speed in the past 10-minutes.

From - Direction from which the wind is blowing.  If you face this direction, the wind will be blowing in your face.

Peak Gust - Speed and time of highest wind since midnight.

Rain

Today - Total rainfall in inches since midnight.

Storm Total - Continuous rainfall total until there is a 24-hour dry period.

Peak Rain - Time of heaviest rainfall since midnight.

Month Total - Total rainfall since the beginning of the month.

Year Total - Total rainfall since the beginning of the year.

Measured by a tipping bucket rain gauge. The tipping bucket rain gauge measures the intensity of precipitation. Rain falls in a receptacle then drains in one of the two compartments of the tipping bucket. When the water of one of the compartments reaches 0.01"...the bucket falls over and the second compartment is set up under the receptacle. Every drop of the tipping bucket is recorded. When data is recorded, the water spills out the bottom of the bucket. The detector is capable of measuring precipitation above freezing (32F).  Below freezing, a heater must be added to the gauge to melt freezing rain or snow.

Humidity

Humidity - The ratio of the amount of water vapor actually present in the air to the greatest amount possible at the same temperature. Dew point is by far the better measurement of how humid the air feels. This is the case because dew point is a measurement of how much humidity is in the air, no ifs, ands or buts about it. Relative humidity tells you how much humidity is in the air compared with how much can be in the air at the temperature the air happens to be when you measure it. This means that the relative humidity goes down as the temperature goes up even though the amount of water vapor in the air stays the same.

Dew Point Temperature -

     75 or higher...Extremely uncomfortable

     70-74............Very humid (tropical), quite uncomfortable

     65-69............A bit uncomfortable for most people

     60-64............Ok for most, but everyone begins to feel the humidity

     55-59............Comfortable

     50-54............Very comfortable

     49 or less......Feels like the west, very pleasant, a bit dry to some

The dew-point is an important measurement used to predict the formation of dew, frost, and fog. If dew-point and air temperature are close together in the late afternoon when the air begins to turn colder, fog is likely during the night. High dew-point indicates high vapor content; low dew-point indicates low vapor content. You can even use dew-point to predict the minimum overnight temperature. The afternoon’s dew-point gives you an idea of what the low temperature will be overnight because the air is not likely to get colder than the dew-point.

Barometer

Barometer - Barometric pressure changes with local weather conditions making pressure an important and useful weather forecasting tool. High pressure is generally associated with fair weather...low pressure is generally associated with poor weather. Readings below 29.92" of mercury are in low pressure.  Readings above 29.92" are in high pressure.

Trend - The reading itself is not as important as the trend, i.e., is the pressure falling or rising. In general, rising pressure indicates improving weather conditions while falling pressure indicates deteriorating weather conditions.