JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. – You can check out wave conditions before you hit Jacksonville Beach with a new WeatherSTEM camera.
It is mounted on the pier and offers the closest live streaming images of the water, which will be helpful for lifeguards to monitor the drift and rip currents.
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It is part of a state-of-the-art weather station integrated into the popular WeatherSTEM meso-network, which many local schools use to help foster meteorological education.
ONLINE: Check out the new camera
Jacksonville Beach used funds from the Florida Severe Weather Network Grant to acquire the hardware that streams weather data, including high definition video.
Wind data directly on the beach will be helpful for the Weather Authority in assessing the potential for rip currents. The sensor package even includes lightning detection, which you can monitor through the WeatherSTEM website.
Lifeguards will also use the stream to monitor the littoral curent and weather conditions that could pose a threat to bathers.
Other WeatherSTEM beach cameras are located at Neptune Beach and looking over A1A in South Ponte Vedra Beach.
The News4Jax streaming video camera that is shown on television is also available online. You can always check out the live feed from the News4Jax camera atop the American Red Cross Life Saving Corps building at the foot of Beach Boulevard.