Fischer Porter Charts

Fischer Porter Charts are charts of liquid water precipitation measurements. Fischer Porter gauges use a weighing bucket to record temperature. The record, a thin strip of paper only 2-3 inches wide but several tens of feet long, is created by punching small holes along the chart every 15 minutes, indicating whether new precipitation has fallen since the last measurement. The chart contains, across its width, 16 punchable locations made up of 4 sets of 1,2, 4,8 values. These are labeled. There are also 1 or 2 sets of sprocket drive holes along the charts. Fischer Porter Gauge phase-in began in 1963. The paper-based chart was phased out during the 1990s and replaced by automated digital gauges. However, some stations still continue to provide charts to the present day. Charts primarily originate from National Weather Service and Cooperative stations. Until 2013, the vast majority of charts were read and converted to digital data, which was then integrated into various precipitation datasets. As of 2013, charts received in paper form are not automatically converted to a digital format.