BAO USER's FEE
Initial fee for use of BAO: $10k Labor ($5k) 1 wk for setup/etc and admin overhead Facility infrastructure costs ($1k) Data ($4k) Data from 1-3 levels on tower (T/RH/spd/dir) Surface pressure and precip Maintain tower istruments Data processing Monthly use $5k Data from 1-3 levels on tower (T/RH/spd/dir) Surface pressure and precip Maintain istruments Data processing Facility infrastructure costs If additional time is required of NOAA/ETL personnel figure $4k/wk Bottom line is $10k for the first month and $5k/month after that.
The Boulder Atmospheric Observatory (BAO) tower has been owned and operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration�s (NOAA) Environmental Technology Laboratory (ETL) for more than 25 years. Constructed in 1976-1977 at a cost of $1.3M, the BAO sits on State of Colorado land just west of I-25, and just east of the town of Erie, along the I-25 corridor. At a height of 300 m (with structural strength capable of supporting an additional 200 m extension), the BAO is a very unique observational platform situated on the gently rolling plains of eastern Colorado. The BAO was originally constructed to support atmospheric boundary layer probes (e.g., temperature, humidity, wind, and turbulence sensors). Data from these sensors was used in a number of fundamental boundary layer studies and to assess the performance of a wide variety of ground- based remote sensing systems developed by ETL (e.g., radar, lidar, sodar). The dozens of publications that resulted from these studies have established the BAO tower as a premier boundary layer observation facility. Over the years use of the BAO has expanded. NOAA�s Climate Monitoring and Diagnostics Laboratory (CMDL) began to make measurements from the top the BAO tower in 1985 in an effort to extend NOAA�s radiation observational network and to take advantage of the unique opportunity presented by the tower. That opportunity was, and is, to be able to view a relatively large surface area and make extended quantitative observations of solar and infrared radiation that is either reflected or emitted from that portion of the earth�s surface. The size of the area sampled from the top of the BAO approaches that sampled by satellite or simulated in numerical weather and climate models. The land surface area surrounding the BAO is representative of an area whose complexities make it a challenge to interpret in satellite data or to properly model numerically, but which is similar to a significant portion of the earth�s land surface. This defining test for the satellite observations and General Circulations Models (GCM) makes the data particularly valuable. The data collected on the BAO tower have been, and are being, used in multiple satellite global radiation budget studies and by various GCM groups, including NOAA�s Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory and European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting. Additionally the BAO tower site is a participant in the World Climate Research Program�s Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN) that requires that the data meet certain high standards. The BSRN collects the data and provides it through its central high-visibility archive in Zurich, Switzerland. Data are also available directly from the CMDL radiation group in Boulder. The radiation data collected at the BAO tower are continuous, sampling once per second, 24 hours a day for the last 16 years with only minimal loss so that data are available for nearly any time frame of interest to the diverse user community. Also, such a long-term data set has become valuable in its own right as an important record of the local and regional climate as driven by and reflected in the energy budget obtained from such a uniquely representative vantage point. The BAO sits on 100 acres of State of Colorado land located ~1.25 miles west of I-25 and .25 miles N of Weld County Rd 8 (Road Map). This land is primarily agricultural and consists of natural grass and wheat fields.
BAO Report 1 Project Phoenix The Spetember 1978 Field Report Dec 1979 BAO Report 2 The Boulder Low_level Intercomparison Experiment Jun 1980 Preprint of WMO Report BAO Report 3 Turbulence Statistics for Design of Wind Turbine Generators Dec 1980 Preprint of Report to DOE BAO Report 4 Studies of Nocturnal Stable Layers at BAO Jan 1983 BAO Report 5 An Evaluation of Wind Measurements by Four Doppler Sodars Jul 1984 BAO Report 6 A Field Comparison of IN SITU Meteorological Sensors Dec 1985 BAO Report 7 Project CONDORS Convective Diffusion Observed by Remote Sensors Jul 1986
Boulder Upslope Cloud Observation Experiment (BUCOE) Jun 1982 Kaimal, J.C. and J.E. Gaynor: 1983, The Boulder Atmpspheric Observatory. J Applied Meteor. 22, 863-880. "The Weather Tamers" Science Digest Nov 1983 "Wind Shear" Popular Science Mar 1987 Northern Front Range Air Quality Study NFRAQS ETL Air Quality Study ETL NFRAQS Program