10.5.3 Type-I and Type-II  10.5 Some dangers in  10.5.1 Unrecognized causes

10.5.2 Climatology

Planning for expected weather events is often the most difficult part of designing field experiments. The success of field experiments often depends on encountering suitable weather, and those weather events may occur irregularly. Often suitable climatological information is not available because the experiment depends on detailed characteristics of the weather that are not documented routinely. Experience in the area where the experiment is planned is invaluable.

Extensive climatological data are available, from sources that include the National Climatic Data Center, the archives at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, and from many state climatologist offices. Useful contacts for these data are: at NCDC, National Climatic Data Center, Federal Building, Asheville, NC   28801-2733 (704-271-4800; FAX 704-271-4876; e-mail orders@ncdc.noaa.gov); at NCAR, Data Support Section, National Center for Atmospheric Research, P. O. Box 3000, Boulder CO 80307-3000 (e-mail datahelp@ncar.ucar.edu; World-Wide Web address http://www.ucar.edu/dss/index.html).