Cariboo Alpine Mesonet meteorological data, 2017-2021

This is a dataset of time series of meteorological variables collected at 15 minute intervals at 22 sites across the Quesnel, upper Fraser and Nechako watersheds. Among meteorological variables measured are air, near-surface air/snow and soil temperatures, relative humidity, snow depth, atmospheric pressure, precipitation, solar radiation, wind speed and direction. The database also contains rainfall and air temperature data collected in a network of tipping bucket rain gauges deployed in the upper Nechako Watershed. Data are provided in comma-delimited format with one file for each site. Each file name identifies the site location and they are numbered chronologically. The first column contains the date/time (PDT) in the format MM/DD/YEAR HH:MM. The next column is typically the battery voltage, and the following columns are the meteorological data at 15 minute intervals. Column headers provide the variable names and their units, in addition to the height at which the instruments are set up above ground or depths within soils. The last set of columns contains a recommended flag for data quality with "P" representing a "pass", and "F" denoting a "fail". A document in the main directory provides details on the quality assurance/control (QA/QC) process. Missing data or not-applicable information are denoted by "NaN" or "NA", respectively. Additional metadata, instrument specifications and legends are provided in a Word document for each site. A diagram in the main directory provides the temporal availability for each site for 2017-2021. 

The time series for the tipping bucket rain gauges are set up in a similar way with date/timestamp in the first column, the second column air temperature (degrees Celsius), and the third column cumulative rainfall (mm). Blank cells for rainfall indicate zero values or missing data. Tipping bucket rain gauges are not shielded nor heated, and therefore not designed to measure snowfall. Data for two sites, Kasalka Creek and Laventie Creek, are not yet available due to animal disturbance during the first data collection effort.