Solar-powered weather monitoring station set up at IIT Goa as part of US-India collaboration

PANAJI: The City University of New York (CUNY) has installed a solar-powered weather monitoring station at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Goa as part of the collaboration between the USA and India.

The weather station at IIT Goa, located at Farmagudi village in South Goa, was installed on Tuesday, paving the way for a series of other such installations in the states of Maharashtra and Gujarat, those linked to the project said.

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Neal Philip, professor from Bronx Community College of the CUNY, said the project was funded by the US Consulate General, Mumbai. The project is part of a collaboration between CUNY and IIT Goa. "This is our first project and we are looking forward to more such projects," he said.

Philip said it is a solar-powered modular system. "You can have regular weather information, temperature, humidity, solar radiation, UV radiation, moisture, air quality and other things with this station," he said. "It has a lot of facilities other than the normal weather station does," he said. The CUNY will install more such stations in western India including that at DY Patil University in Navi Mumbai, then to Gujarat to two installations including Ahmedabad university.

Sharad Sinha, associate professor at IIT Goa, said this project is related to weather and climate monitoring. "This project will help monitor the weather. IIT Goa is already working with the Goa Pollution Control Board, wherein we are installing air quality monitoring stations. This weather station will also help our studies," he added. Sinha said this is important for IIT Goa because of their association with the US Consulate and the CUNY. A 23-member faculty and student delegation from the US was in Goa to inaugurate the weather station project at IIT Goa.