Air temperature

What is air temperature?

Air temperature is simply how hot or cold the outside air is.

A picture of a blue thermometer, used to measure air temperature.

Why is air temperature important for water testing?

Measuring environmental variables, like temperature, helps us understand the context of our other observations.

What does a measurement mean?

It depends! You’ll only get to know the significance of these results if you test consistently over time. Find a great example of consistent water quality monitoring here.

Water Rangers Protocol

Make sure the thermometer is out of direct sunlight for at least 5 minutes. Do not hang the thermometer around your neck while measuring because the heat from your body will affect the reading. Pro Tip: hang your thermometer from a tree! That way it’s out of direct sunlight and away from your hot body.

Don’t have a thermometer yet? Thermometers are available for purchase at our online store.

Ready to start uploading your data? Visit our data platform.