How to measure your rain.

Measure the depth of the rain.

The rain data calculator Use this to calculate different measurements for your rain. You can enter different values such as volume, area or weight to calculate how much rain you caught in millimeters

To put your rain measurements into the RainCatch database, you must have the depth of rain. If you are using a 2 litre water bottle from a supermarket you can normally measure this with a ruler in millilitres. Use the "log in" link above, or log in and add your measurements here . Remember that there is a small section at the end of the ruler that you should exclude from your measurements.

Also very important is the fact that these bottles are usually shaped at the bottom. You need a completely flat bottom to be able to measure depth accurately. One way of getting this would be to use some brightly coloured jelly mixture and let it set in the bottom of the bottle. Then you can measure the depth from the top of the jelly where the water starts. You can always eat the rest of the jelly!

If you are using any other kind of bottle, or even if you want to check your figures, then there are different measurements you can make.

Then you can add them to the rain data calculator and let it work out the right amounts. If you really like maths then you can calculate the measurements yourself and then check them using the calculator. The measurements you can add to the calculator are

• Diameter of the bottle
• Area of the top of the bottle
• Weight of water
• Volume of water

Some of these measurements can be worked out from others. You can work out what the depth of the water should be if you have the volume and then divide it by the area at the top of the bottle

 

Measure the diameter of your bottle.

This is how wide the bottle is across the top. Take your rulers and measure your bottle. (centimeters)

Weigh your water.

Take your bottle and first weigh that empty. Make a note of how much it weighs. Then, when you have collected your water weigh them together and subtract the weight of the bottle from the whole. This will give you the weight of the water (grams)

Measure the volume

How much water is there? Carefully pour the water into a measuring jug or beaker and see how much there is (cubic centimeters)

Calculate the area at the top of the bottle

You can do this by using the calculator page