From the Editors: Fayetteville's weather never looked so good

We've given the weather a makeover.

No, we haven't figured out how to fast-forward to spring, unfortunately. But thanks to The Fayetteville Observer's partnership with WRAL-TV, we've redesigned the weather page at fayobserver.com/weather. with new features.

One cool part of the page is the current conditions. WRAL installed a "weather stick" -- a much more technologically advanced piece of equipment than its name implies -- on the roof of the Observer's building on Whitfield Street. So the conditions you see on our weather page are live here at the Observer, in the center of Fayetteville.

I got to go on the roof and check out the weather stick. Not sure how it all works, but it measures things like rainfall, wind and temperature. Here's a photo I took, using Instagram:

WRAL installed equipment on the roof of the Observer's building on Whitfield Street to monitor current conditions in Fayetteville.By Matt Leclercq

We've also connected with WRAL's weather radar, so you can check out the Fayetteville Doppler whenever you'd like, along with WRAL's extended forecast.

A screenshot of the Observer's new weather page, in partnership with WRAL-TV.

And the Observer's weather guru, Chick Jacobs, is a part of the mix, too. Chick has studied and written about weather in the Sandhills for more than a decade. His blog, Weather Permitting, is where he's constantly staying on top of developing weather, even days out. (At the moment, he has his eyes on a possible chance for snow early next week). You can also follow Chick on Twitter, @FO_Weather.

The weather page is another example of how the Observer's partnership with WRAL benefits our loyal readers as well as the station's viewers. Since we partnered more than a year ago, our teams have shared video and photos and worked together to promote special reports, such as the Observer's Seeking Safety crime series last year.

Let us know what you think of the new weather page. Shoot me an email at leclercqm@fayobserver.com.

By the way, the Observer's roof is a lot higher than you might think. I could see the Prince Charles hotel building off in the distance, despite the rainy gloom Monday:

The distant Prince Charles hotel building, as seen from The Fayetteville Observer's rooftop.By Matt Leclercq

Source: http://www.fayobserver.com/blogs/news/from_the_editor/from-the-editors-fayetteville-s-weather-never-looked-so-good/article_f878c5c8-a579-11e4-b130-7b8e6f2e7f3f.html