Raspberry Pi Weather Station

Raspberry Pi weather station that reads temperature, pressure and humidity data from a BME280 sensor, and records it in a spreadsheet.
The sensor used is from Pimoroni and is available here: shop.pimoroni....
Adafruit also sell a similar board here: www.adafruit.c...
If you need jumper leads, a pack of male-to-female (like I used in the video) is available from Pimoroni here: shop.pimoroni.... or from Adafruit here: www.adafruit.c...
Please note that I have no association with either Pimoroni or Adafruit and that neither has paid or asked me to mention their products. But I know that some viewer will appreciate the links!
You can download the code and spreadsheet shown in the video from this page:
www.explaining...
The PuTTY SSH client used to access the Pi remotely is available from: www.chiark.gre...
If you like this video, you may be interested in some of my other content, such as my “Python Coding Introduction”: • Python Coding Introduc...
More videos on computing and related topics can be found at:
/ explainingcomputers
You may also like my ExplainingTheFuture channel at: / explainingthefuture
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
00:33 The BME280
03:51 Reading Data
06:38 Tinkering & Fixing
09:56 Remote Access
14:03 Recording Data
18:45 Final Test
20:50 Future Possibilities
#RaspberryPi #WeatherStation #BME280 #ExplainingComputers

[@DallasMike424]

I remain amazed at Christopher. His smart, yet non- condescending, manner is encouraging and reassuring.

[@tonyross2947]

Mister Scissors...?

[@youreds91]

@@tonyross2947 Not forgetting Stanley The Knife.

[@tonyross2947]

@@youreds91 🤣🤣🤣

[@tpobrienjr]

@@tonyross2947 Please refrain from mocking the Edged Weapons, Sir.

[@tonyross2947]

@@tpobrienjr 🤣🤣🤣

[@effess8698]

21:00 in order to control the weather you would have to first store the data.....in the cloud

[@williamlyerly3114]

And to get it out, one would have to seed it.

[@adventureoflinkmk2]

So what, why not store it on the Barrett, Cid, Tifa, Yuffie, Aerith, Red XIII, Vincent, or even Cait Sith 😂😂😂😂😂

[@your_utube]

A big revelation was made here. Is he the one who is...??

[@SlavicCelery]

Take my upvote here... You got me chuckling as a result.

[@DarkRedman31]

Yeah but it means you've to wait for rain to retrieve the data! *badam tss*

[@SBCBears]

Here we see that Chris has soldering skills, too. 🏆

[@Araye]

Every time I see a youtuber grab an iron I cringe... but not with Chris. Knows how to solder.

[@6581punk]

Yet no name for the iron? Mr Sizzler would be my choice.

[@crayzeape2230]

@@6581punk Hotshot Harry the Iron ;)

[@afganno3385]

you should see his only fans...he turns them gal into cumfarters

[@evetsotibac]

Chris, I can't tell you how refreshing it is to see someone on KZbin who knows how to solder, and beautifully so!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks greatly for this feedback. Given the comments on my soldering in previous videos, your words are much appreciated. :)

[@mtvlieger]

I could see myself setting several stations up and deploying them around town the next time I teach my unit on weather. Thanks for the idea Chris.

[@smile768]

That’s a good example of a Raspberry Pi video; Python, sensors, SSH, appending to spreadsheets. There’s a lot there to learn from.

[@rc55uk]

I almost spat out my tea when he said "Let's go and get started" instead of "Let's take a closer look".

[@onnozweers]

Fortunately there was mr. scissors to balance things out.

[@ali_new_world]

@@onnozweers 😂😂😂😂😂

[@franciscunningham2631]

Wow, way to crush the 1st video of 2021! This video has everything in it - the BME280 sensor, soldering, I2C, SSH, and use of the Excel/Libra Calc Python library for data collection! Cheers and a very Happy New Year!

[@rexjuggler19]

Of course you showed how to solder properly. I can't tell you how many videos I watch where they touch the solder to the iron, then kind of drip it on the connection point. Not a surprise that you properly do it by heating the connection with the iron first and then apply the solder so that it immediately melts and binds the components. Well done - and you can tell - the connection simply looks good!

[@jamesdinsmore9022]

Being mostly self-taught in the realm of IOT; you have filled in a lot of gaps in my knowledge; thank you very much!

[@HedgewitchHoney]

Bought myself a Waveshare BME280 last night after watching this video which came today. Connected it to my Pi, followed your instructions and it works perfectly, absolutely flawless first time. I now have a full weather station set up in my poly tunnel. Thank you.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Fantastic! This is great to hear.

[@pavan13]

After such a long time seeing a Raspberry Pi Model 3b+ I am so happy

[@ExplainingComputers]

:)

[@send2gl]

I've got a Chinese Pi1 running a web server, dlna server, mumble server and of course SSH. Boots to a partition on an external powered drive so SD card just for boot.

[@Zobbster]

Christopher, thank you, you're one of the best teachers I've ever come across. You're a good man for sharing your knowledge, it's greatly appreciated!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Wow, thanks!

[@ernestgalvan9037]

Not only is he a good man because he shares knowledge and wit and wisdom, but he is also blessed with the ability to share. It’s fun, informative and exciting. Thank you, Sir.

[@GeorgeMaier]

This is a great video! I built a weather station using my Pi last summer. Something I did slightly differently was using two BME280 sensors and averaging their results to help correct for the inaccuracies in these cheap and small sensors - also placing them in a white thermometer box. For my setup, I also had a solar panel and battery in place so that it could run without mains power - and I used the Raspberry Pi as a charge controller (this was the most complicated part of the build as it involved a lot of manually testing voltages and comparing them to ADC read values to build a comparison chart, as my ADC was limited to 5v but I was using a 12v panel and a 7.5v battery, so using resistor based voltage splitters to get a smaller but proportional voltage going into the ADC and then converting them back to real voltages in software to run the relay to allow power from the solar panel onto the battery rail or not (using a buck converter to match panel to battery v, and again to match battery v to the Pi’s 5v)). Also had it add the weather, battery and solar data every minute to an online SQL database which could be accessed through a website - so i could keep an eye on the whole setup remotely.

[@srinivasankh]

@20:43 Britain = Rain, spot on. Wonderful video and best explanation of the end-to-end process as always Chris, thanks for doing such a great work!

[@Peter_Parker69]

So glad you're getting close to 1 million subs now brother. Well earned after 12 years of solid content helping us for over a decade. Respect

[@raytry69]

I use RPI to collect various temperature measurements (2 room, 1 outside, 3 water temps in the buffer tank) to text files (daily basis), and use a simple php and javascript to make a graph of them. The apache and php running on the RPI as well.

[@samaitcheson7057]

Excellent demonstration of doable real world Raspberry Pi application Chris. All in your characteristically comprehensive manner. A very big thank you!

[@tomroderick8213]

Excellent Video. I will be using some of these techniques in a project where an Arduino collects analog data when requested by an R-Pi then the R_pi will store it on a spreadsheet as you have demonstrated. Now, as a 74 year old my next step is to learn Python to add to the large set of computer languages that I have used over the last 50 years.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Good luck!

[@MajinDabora3]

Hey, i have just recently discovered this channel and i instantly fell in love. Just wanted to add a little detail, humidity is often represented in water% in air, but important factor to mention is that the hot air is able to store much more water in it than cold air. So for instance if weather outside is 0degrees C and has 95% humidity and gets in your house, warms to 20degrees C it will also drop in humidity %. it still has the same amount of water but is able to store much more now since air itself is warmer. Thats also why it was showing lower result when the sensor was closer to rasberry and had a higher temperature.

[@himselfe]

The deadpan delivery of "go one step further and actually control the weather" was chilling. Was it a joke? Is Mr Computers our new overlord? Who can tell! 😱

[@caturdaynite7217]

Chris doesn't seem like the overlord type. Just sayin'.

[@SirSmartyPants]

@@caturdaynite7217 I for one welcome our new computer literate overlord.

[@veryfrozen3271]

I mean cloud seeding is a thing and been using it as a wepon since the Vietnam war

[@Tuulos]

@@caturdaynite7217 While that is true he might have teamed up with Colin Furze.

[@allluckyseven]

Happy New Year, Chris!

[@ExplainingComputers]

And to you! :) Silver medal today also.

[@nickcrosby9875]

So pleased you did this Chris as I bought a BME280 before Xmas and have been trying to get my project launched...great minds etc ;)

[@nickcrosby9875]

It's up and running! Dont' quite know how as Mr Solder and Mr Crosby are not best mates. I somehow got the BME to work. Now enjoying the coding/ spreadsheet aspects. Thanks again Chris, cracking stuff

[@HKey_Root]

I have at last got around to completing this project. Terrific. Thank you. The only hiccup I encountered was running the executables. They fell over due to /r (carraige return) errors. That was down to me saving the files by the wrong method. Your instructions were, as ever, flawless. Moving the Pi Zero WH to the garage worked wonders as a method of cooling but sadly it was out of range of my Wifi router. Incidentally There are 4 pin BME280s on the market which are half the price. They work fine as the contact marked with the prohibition/no entry sign isn't used.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Great to hear this worked! :)

[@MAMDAVEM]

Remember Chris that the humidity measured here is "relative Humidity" i.e. relative to temperature. So as the temperature drops the relative humidity will increase, not necessarily and indication that it will rain...... but it might get foggy :)

[@dontabor6708]

oh how we used dew point to describe the humidity levels in the air rather than relative humidity

[@pwood6446]

@@dontabor6708 @Dave M.

[@pwood6446]

I keep trying to explain this to people. Logged on just to do so, you guys beat me, wish I could get everyone looking st the right number.

[@watsoft70]

Had best get my Pi5 on pre-order as everyone is going to want to control the weather, lol. Happy New Year Christopher!

[@emanueltwr]

Can't wait to watch this tomorrow. Cheers to the new year and many blessing to you and your loved ones (including all the viewers)

[@jensschroder8214]

The BME280 has two problems. First, the sensor heats up if you read the values ​​too quickly and often. Second, the air pressure is measured correctly, but the weather forecast calculates the air pressure at sea level. The measured value is lower as the altitude of the location increases. To do this, you have to find the factor by which you multiply the measured value to get the value at sea level. It differs from place to place. I built a weather station with the ESP8266. I can read the data on the website on the ESP8266.

[@jamesprocter102]

I love the fact that I learn more here than I ever did in school

[@brkbtjunkie]

Absolutely amazing that the sensor is that small. Such wondrous times we live in.

[@ExplainingComputers]

I agree. Imagine what people 100 years ago would make of the stuff we have today.

[@Beevreeter]

@@ExplainingComputers And I'm sure we can barely imagine what we'll have 100 years from now...

[@loreleieleanor8124]

I can't tell you how much I love this video and everything it explains, and I can't tell you how much I can't wait to do it again with my raspberry pi (which is currently connected to a much simpler temperature sensor via a breadboard). Thank you so much for all this!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Good luck! :)

[@HKey_Root]

Splendiferous, Another fine project to get my teeth into. You're fast becoming a national treasure Chris. 717k subscribers and climbing!

[@mattybbw533]

Another great video! I’ve been binging your videos since I’ve found this channel about a month or so ago. I’ve already learned so much, so thank you and keep up the great work!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@DallasMike424]

Wonderful, and right up my interest alley. We live at the southern end of Tornado Alley. I can't resist the Dad Joke about hanging a Raspberry Pi outside on a piece of string: If Raspberry Pi is wet, it is raining. If Raspberry Pi is green, it rained a while ago. If Raspberry Pi is white, it is snowing. If Raspberry Pi is shaking, there is an earthquake. If Raspberry Pi is dry, the weather is fair. If Raspberry Pi is swinging, it's windy. If Raspberry Pi is warm, the sun is out. If Raspberry Pi is not visible, it's dark outside. If Raspberry Pi is under water, there is a flood. If Raspberry Pi is gone, there is a tornado (Run!!)

[@teunschrader763]

if rpi broken it has rained

[@ramosel]

Ahhh... The Colorado Weather Rock. I believe there is a Metric version in North Yorkshire as well.

[@junglemouse4585]

🤣

[@Reziac]

I am so totally stealing that :D Greets from the Northern Wastes, land of snow, ice, and .. here if the Pi is missing, it's under the snowdrift. :)

[@ulrichkalber9039]

oldie but goodie. I have seen so many versions of this... edit: If Pi is hot call 112/999 and report a fire (in the US: call 911)

[@siku5it]

I really love this. Thank you Chris. Here are some silly thoughts about what I would do next with this. a) Dump the data into a database - something like MySQL, so you can make some serious queries and save the data for a long time . b) Use a graphing tool to show the data in graphs with a UI that allows for specific time frames etc. have the UI runnable off a webserver installed on the RPI. c) Attach a LiPO battery with a Solar Panel and a timer : Allow the RPI to wake up every 1/2h or 1h and take measurements (as sample), save it and go to sleep. d) Allow the RPI to dump the database to a NAS (just in case the RPI is pillaged or struck by lightning -- it does some ionizing with all that hardware :) and enable the same UI running off the historical data stored in the NAS - e) Have a network of these spread through the house to collect data off the various floors. - f) 3D Print a case with space for the sensor(s), solar panel and LipoBattery - g) Shrink the Moon h) Steal the Moon.

[@Just_lift_anyone]

@0:50 Oh man that's a very nice, precise thin-cut, barely any stepping or tearing, easily a 9/10

[@jackspence2645]

This is great! I have been trying to build a weather station but have had no idea how to do it. Maybe you could do a part two adding something like wind speed?

[@cbrhubs9245]

I second this Chris

[@gigteevee6118]

I'll consider this for monitoring temp and humidity in my loft, pre and post insulation....very interesting, and a great video generally.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Now this sounds like a very practical application. :)

[@MarioSalasEspinoza]

I have a beautiful UI with node red with the BME280. My personal Weather Station for my living room.

[@neilshobbyhq]

Wow, great stuff, I have just ordered my sensor. When you mentioned controlling the weather you took me right back to my childhood, 1974 to be exact, does anyone else remember the program put out to help children with their literacy skills called Cloudburst, I have no idea why it came to mind but it certainly brought back some memories

[@DutchSteamboat]

Jeremy Clarkson: I'm famous for my pauses. ExplainingComputers: Hold my beer. Also EC - "garage or garahge" - "pooty". :-) ExplainingComputers is my Sunday ritual - one I look forward to. There's never been one where I leave half-way. The channel really does deserve 1M subscribers.

[@anthonyfmoss]

This is the best KZbin channel about computers..... ...in the world!

[@jamesmarlowe4034]

If Jezza or Hammond or May ever started a computer channel, I’d subscribe. “This... is the Acer Ferrari laptop...”

[@YounesLayachi]

@@jamesmarlowe4034 you didn't have to remind us of the dreaded acer ferrati laptop 😂

[@neurobioboy]

Very cool project! Here is a suggestion for improving it: having everything displayed on a small screen, like a little e-ink display could be so cool!!

[@eaaeeeea]

I think I'll repurpose an old tablet to show the measured weather data and some 3rd party weather forecasts.

[@TheGrisu486]

And back again a new great project for lousy cold winter days. I can't wait to control my personal weather with a brand new Raspberry pi 5!

[@mattbassham]

Thank you for making this. I am currently using an Nova SDS011 sensor with ras-pi for my dissertation and your Recording Data section is very useful. Look forward to seeing more of your videos in the future 👍🏻

[@Bassotronics]

Such an amazing little hardware with almost limitless potential. Great explanatory video!

[@chriscottingham2003]

Great it's Sunday again Thanks Chris from another Chris 😀

[@ExplainingComputers]

Any time!

[@storage000]

I know there's many reason to get a Pi, I'd love my Pi with a side of weather forecast! love this project and can't wait to try it myself; thank you very much Mr. Barnatt

[@Pantelos123]

Happy new year, i would never make such a project, but here I am hearing that calm voice

[@TheUglyGnome]

20:29 Humidity hasn't really been increasing there. During the first measurement absolute humidity was 5.36 g/m^3 and during the last one it was up to 5.47 g/m^3. This difference is not significant and might be even within error tolerance of the probe. Relative humidity has risen, because the temperature has been dropping.

[@dirkocket2803]

Happy New Year and a happy birthday for yesterday.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thank you! And a Happy New Year!

[@jchanning72]

An excellent educational video, clearly explained and easy to follow. I love the quirky retro geek delivery, Chris looks and sounds like he is presenting on a BBC2 science show from 1982.

[@Rasmus0909]

Hi Chris, Your humidity increases because your temperature drops. What you're seeing from the BME280 is relative humidity, which indicates how saturated the air is with moisture. The warmer the air, the more capacity so to speak. Hope this clears up why your humidity is increasing with lower temperature. I think if you were to calculate the absolute humidity, you would see that it stayed relatively constant. Regards, Rasmus

[@YounesLayachi]

Ah yes, the pi 5 is long awaited by all masterminds around the world 😅

[@booboyBL]

Release date April 1st ? Should be great for weather control.

[@pavan13]

Hey Chris your soldering is very neat and nice too 👍

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks 👍

[@caturdaynite7217]

As an electronics major I agree your soldering is top notch!

[@frostin1990]

Wow!! I got this working flawlessly on just about some random BME280 sensor I picked up. Your tutorial was well detailed, thanks :)

[@ExplainingComputers]

Great to hear!

[@paulwright4765]

Thank you Chris love your videos! Reminds me of when I was younger and used to stay up watching OU programs through the night.

[@wd269]

Yes, first RPi 5 project ---- Control the Weather.

[@awesomefacepalm]

So we can set the weather to always sunny in Philadelphia

[@onnozweers]

Then, with Raspberry Pi 6, we can fix the climate.

[@awesomefacepalm]

@@onnozweers Pi 7, reverse entropy

[@smartassist9700]

I HAD TO REPLAY LAST FEW MINUTES!!! YOU DID SAY NEXT TRY TO CONTROL WEATHER....LOL

[@williamjames9466]

Thank you for encouraging video. It, has left me liking the idea of building the rig you showed and thinking about the possible uses I could put it to. You bravely, including your initial error of not mounting the sensors away from the RPi, which was a good choice, as it demonstrated the need to separate them from each other, in a practical way. Moreover, in showing it, rather than just saying it, you engendered greater learning, for me.

[@wmacosx]

I did the same thing (with another sensor) but to collect the data I stored it on a google spreadsheet, so it's easy to view from everywhere and you can have self updating charts. The downside is that you obviously need internet on the PI

[@energyideas]

Careful to get actual BME280, purchased many that weren't as advertised.

[@marcdraco2189]

Yeah, many are the cheaper versions without the humidity.

[@zenmaster24]

were they defective in some way @energyideas?

[@marcdraco2189]

​@@zenmaster24 Many sellers mix up (accidentally or otherwise) the BME280 with the (much) cheaper counterpart bm*P*280 - which doesn't detect humidity. Good explanation here: goughlui.com/2018/08/05/note-bosch-sensortec-bmp280-vs-bme280-sensor-confusion/

[@IgabodDobagi]

I gotta give you a slow clap for the stone-faced delivery of that weather control line at the end. That caught me off guard. I honestly believed you intended to do just that for a couple seconds before it dawned on me that you were joking. Thank you for taking the time to do this and also providing that laugh for me at the end. Excellent work as usual.

[@joamon559]

This was an excellent basic explanation. Exactly what I was looking for as a newberry. Thank you from Australia.

[@johansteenkamp9214]

Thanks Chris. Always fun to see the the endless possibilities of a Raspberry Pi. Talking of the Raspberry Pi. This week I stumbled upon a web page talking about a Raspberry Pi Command module 4, which surfaces a PCI Express port. Think a CM4 might make an interesting future video.

[@Gabriel2.0]

it will be amazing to get an eINK screen and make this into a standalone unit

[@ExplainingComputers]

Yes, there are possibilities . . .

[@diogenesdevletoglou6190]

www.ti.com/tool/HDC2010METER-EVM?keyMatch=HDC2010%20REF%20DESIGN&tisearch=Search-EN-everything

[@edkok5880]

The Pi is perfectly cable of running InfluxDB (a time-series database) and Grafana for creating graphs and gauges. Grafana runs as a web-UI so you can view it (remotely!) with a browser.

[@Dre3ed]

Control the weather ?

[@Morphineck]

My kid: "Dad I want to be able to control the weather" Me: "Listen you little brat, no one can control the weather" Chris: "Raspberry 5 is here... mwahaha, MWAHAHAHAHA"

[@TheTechieScientist]

This video like all the other videos looks very nice and satisfying... especially the parts where you show the soldering and the raspberry pi 3b+ In all its shiny glory....Loved the video and Happy New Year 👍

[@AllanKobelansky]

I encourage everyone, including you Christopher, to explore Node-Red. This project is ideally suited for NR.

[@famailiaanima]

11:00 I didn't know that you can run a Python script like that, I thought only shell scripts could do it. Very nice to know!

[@christopherwong9748]

Indeed, other files can be executed directly like that. All you need to do is specify the shebang on the first line of a file. In the provided script bme280_cjb_AA.py, you can see it's `#!/usr/bin/env python` . Other shebangs can be provided, like I've seen for `awk`. Wikipedia has lots of useful information about this: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shebang_(Unix)

[@daveamies5031]

Hey Chris when you figure out how to control the weather (I suspect you'll need a bit more than a RPi 5), since you get a lot of precipitation in the UK, would you mind sharing some of that precipitation with the people in Western QLD, not asking for a lot, just 10-15 mm a month spread nice and evenly over the year would be perfect 👌 🤣🤣🤣

[@PhilipBallGarry]

Another excellent workshop Chris - thank you. It would be interesting to see the data displayed as a graph so trends may be more easily spotted. Also, changing the code to automatically spot trends it could output a weather prediction. In the meantime, now the Pi5 is here, I'm excited by your proposed next project. I like blue skies and 20 degrees but giving us choice over our weather sounds great. If the new code can be adjusted to localise the set weather, we could make sure we choose appropriately for that annoying neighbour. I wonder what peripherals will be needed though - and if Pi Hut will have them in stock 🤔🤣

[@jimster1111]

im an electrician and ive been wanting to make and install automated raspberry pi based greenhouses. solar powered or grid powered systems powering a raspberry pi and its sensors & motor actuators to lift panes/ turn on fans to create airflow/expel heat. dehumidifier and humidifier to control the perfect humidity for your crops, maybe a heater if youre in a colder climate. your videos are really helping me learn the coding side, i think im ready to buy my first raspberry pi! please put out more of these types of videos. maybe a video on how to make a simple android based app that can interact with your raspberry pi and read things like temperature in real time? id love that.

[@philipprudhomme6967]

Chris, thanks for that , I learned a lot. Incidentally you'll find you need an Apple device to control the weather, but Microsoft control the universe!

[@tin2001]

The Apple device doesn't really control the weather.... It just convinces you it does.

[@drishalballaney6590]

4:35 why sudo for using pip? always try to use pip without sudo or install the modules from the repos sometimes pip with sudo might cause package conflicts

[@chriholt]

I've had a personal weather station since late 2006 and have always enjoyed it. It's also great fun to upload my weather data to various weather-related websites, including MetOffice. A personal OCD trigger - you didn't have a space between the # and "Save the workbook" in your Python code :)

[@zinsy23]

Great video! I like how you do both pronunciations of garage. I personally do the second pronunciation. I always do the same thing with Z because I'm in the U.S and don't know what people say. I'm glad I'm not the only one who does multiple pronunciations like that!

[@lorderectus1849]

I saw a lot of virtualboxes!

[@rookieone33]

Great idea! Ordered a bme280 almost directly after seeing this video :) I hooked it up to a pine64a that I had in the drawer, which has a compatible gpio. Today I received the bme280 and used some of your python script, thank you! It's now in a test setup just outside my backdoor, and need to make a longer wire for the sensor and get a nice housing for it. Never stared so long at temperature, pressure and humidity ;) Will add the excel bit soon to the code. Anyone that has a good experience with a nice housing for the sensor? Please share link to it! :)

[@ExplainingComputers]

Great to hear!

[@tristanlouthrobins]

What a wonderful tutorial! So clear and perfectly demonstrated. I've got my first Pi on order and a weather station will be one of my first projects. This video was hugely informative. Thank you!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Enjoy your new Pi. :)

[@WHAT-GRINDS-MY-GEARS]

Can't wait till my daughter is old enough to do a project like this. Like a British Bill Nye, but instead the computer guy! Love this channel.

[@tradermonk9403]

Thank you very much professor! I suspect that allthis can be done on a Pie0w as well. Also is it possible to add wind speed/direction and a rain sensor to this weather station?

[@ExplainingComputers]

Yes, a Pi Zero can do this just fine. I must delve into the wind side of things . . .

[@tonydonnelly]

I've been using a PiZero for this for about 4 years now, with a rain sensor and also a relay to control a fountain in my garden which shuts the fountain off if it detects low water level, or if the outside temperature drops below freezing. The Pi0 also hosts a small website which displays the data, so more than adequate for this type of project. Most wind speed sensors use a magnetic switch to detect a rotation of the rotor cups. Again, the Pi0 should be able to count the number of rotations over a period of time and calculate the wind speed quite easily.

[@ExplainingComputers]

@@tonydonnelly Great to hear this. I can see that I must delve into a wind speed measurement system -- I had been musing on using a optical sensor to monitor the rotation of a windmill.

[@Mustafa.alhijjawi]

Thank you for this beneficial content Have a pleasant evening dear sir🌷 How is that thing on your nick doing?

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks for this. The thing on my neck is stable now, sealed up and sometimes painful. But quite OK.

[@Mustafa.alhijjawi]

@@ExplainingComputers good to hear that it's quite will, if you use the eggplant tincture unit might get red and open at first but within a week or two it should start healing and new skin will take over. Wish all the best

[@andersmeiniche2746]

Hurray you did the soldering right. Nice to see someone who do it the right way ;)

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks 👍 I am really pleased to hear this.

[@TopHatCentury]

I find this project fascinating because of how people can now see ongoing weather trends and record their own weather data at home for a small amount of money. It is truly impressive how technology consistently changes.

[@dr.jonathankramer9242]

EC, now hosted by Chris and Mr. Scissors!

[@michalrzmichalrz6656]

Lol, you can't change the weather with a single board computer. You'd need at least two boards.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Ah, right. You are probably correct. A cluster approach needed.

[@SomeOne-rh5so]

Nice! Next project lets make HVAC - in addition start heater in garage to keep 21-23 C. Good luck Chris.

[@wallaceshackleton1889]

As a follow up to my comments, I had an enjoyable number of sessions trying to make a BMP280 work with a Pi Zero W, I succeeded. On my need to find out and an possible idea for an extension to this tutorial would be to get the data remotely, from the pi W via wifi for a home weather station. Also, it's worth mentioning that the pressure is the local air pressure and not the mean sea level air pressure, that the Met folk use, so compensation has to be made for that in a weather station use. My house is 400ft above sea level so that's approx +14hPa to make it read mean sea level pressure, 1hPa per 30 feet.

[@TradieTrev]

Massive overkill mate! Surely an ESP chip with mqtt support gives the same results without such an overhead?

[@ExplainingComputers]

It is a Raspberry Pi Project . . .

[@farktard2740]

mqtt on an esp still will blow your budget (memory wise) as the bme 280 calibrated correctly is a bitch....check the data sheet trev. I see what you are saying, but this sensor is a beast when on the rails

[@norullzz]

You can still use micropython on your ESP, my random amazon BME280 had two breakout boards, so now I had to buy an ESP chip to connect the second one. Just used influx on the raspberry pi, if you do a post request to the ESP, you can add data to the database. Then also run grafana on the RPi and you can readout both sensors in a graph.

[@saturno_tv]

First, once more!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Yes, another gold medal to you -- and the first of 2021! :)

[@ostekake]

I like to calculate the measured air pressure over to relative pressure. Then it uses to match more with the weather forecast.

[@ColinBroderickMaths]

For people who want to run something like this in the background, look up either "linux screen" or "nohup". Screen is more powerful. Nohup is easier to use but arguably harder to stop processes cleanly. The way it's presented in this video, the command will stop running if you disconnect the SSH session.

[@DarkRedman31]

I like that good geek sense of humor at the end of the video.

[@jaffarbh]

This is brilliant stuff. You could use the data to train a simple linear model to predict if it's going to rain and perhaps trigger an alarm.

[@cokeforever]

First off, Happy New Year! Secondly, I think a great tutorial would be to make rpi inform you via email/sms of notable changes in weather patterns, like sudden pressure or temp changes. That would allow to see rpi used both as sensor serving pc and communication device, while also showing some more advanced programming logics.

[@gravelyetigravelyeti4284]

this is perfect timing as i was attempting to do the same thing via a DHT11 sensor without much luck, thanks chris and happy new year.

[@VideosfromNH]

This video is good for two reasons. Demonstrating the sensor on a RPi. The second reason is for updating a spreadsheet through Python. Nice to see this functionality.

[@bradskis81]

Brilliant video and production! Thank you for all your expertise in this field and explaining and demonstrating it so well. May I lend some knowledge from my field in return. Humidity is practically represented as a percentage of a parcel of air's capacity to hold moisture, not the actual amount of moisture in a given volume of air (absolute humidity). Since warm air is able to hold more moisture, the humidity in that warm air will be less relatively. If you took that same parcel of air and cooled it, i.e. going outside to cold air, given the same number of water molecules in a given volume, but colder air, that cold air will have a higher relative humidity since it's water holding capacity is lower. So, the warmer the air, the more moisture it can hold, leading to lower relative humidity. Cold air-less moisture holding capability-higher relative humidity.

[@waltermeerschaert]

Temperature is inversely related to relative humidity. Warm air has the capacity to hold more water, so, as temp goes up, RELATIVE humidity (% saturation of air at the current temp) goes down, as the air can now hold more water.

[@Kw1161]

Well it seems to beat my weather tree outside. It's hard to see rain on the branches now the leaves fell off. Another great video! Thanks for the information! Have a Happy New Year, Chris!