Funding to support the installation of equipment for the hawai'i mesonet network (HMN), a congressionally-directed special community project requested by senator mazie hirono and identified in the…

This Project Grant award of $350,000 from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under the Congressionally Identified Awards and Projects program (CFDA 11.469) supports the installation of equipment for the Hawaii Mesonet Network (HMN), a statewide environmental monitoring system. The HMN will consist of 84 automated weather stations across Hawaii that will collect real-time data on conditions such as rainfall, solar radiation, temperature, humidity, and wind speed. This funding will support the installation of equipment in remote areas of the state where no prior data was available, filling critical gaps and improving severe weather forecasting capabilities. The award was made on October 1, 2024, with a planned completion date of September 30, 2026. The sub-awardee for this project is the State of Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, which will lead the implementation and operation of the HMN.

Funding to support the installation of equipment for the hawai'i mesonet network (HMN), a congressionally-directed special community project requested by senator mazie hirono and identified in the consolidated appropriations act, 2024 (P.L. 118-42), signed into law on march 9, 2024. Mesonets are interconnected networks of instrumented environmental monitoring stations across an entire state, or a small footprint of a state/region. The HMN will consist of 84 automated stations located across the state and collect real-time data on weather conditions, including rainfall rates, solar radiation, air temperature, humidity, and wind speed. The HMN will provide public access to near real-time data from all mesonet stations as part of the hawai'i climate data portal. The capital outlay provided will support the installation of equipment in some of the most remote parts of the state where no data was previously available. The HMN is expected to fill critical gaps in data collection and to improve precise and timely warning of severe weather outbreaks.