Instrument : Balloon-Borne Sounding System (SONDE)
Beneficiary of Recovery Act funding.
Instrument Categories
Atmospheric Profiling
General Overview
The balloon-borne sounding system (SONDE) provides in situ measurements (vertical profiles) of both the thermodynamic state of the atmosphere, and the wind speed and direction. Sondes are launched at the sites at the following frequencies:
- SGP: 4 times per day
- NSA Barrow, Alaska: 2 times per day
- TWP Manus, PNG: 2 times per day
- TWP Nauru Island: 2 times per day
- AMF1 and AMF2: Each campaign sets the frequency; usually 4 times per day and has been as many as 8 per day.
Output Value-Added Products
This instrument is an input to the following value-added products, which provide improved measurements or derived quantities.
- lssonde : BBSS: derived, relative humidity scaled with MWR
Output Datastreams
- sonde : Balloon-borne Sounding System (BBSS): meterological data profile
- sondewnpn : Balloon-borne sounding system (BBSS): Vaisala-processed winds, press., temp, &RH
- sondewnpr : Balloon-borne sounding system (BBSS): Vaisala winds, research press., temp, &RH
- sondewrpn : Balloon-borne sounding system (BBSS): research winds, Vaisala press., temp, &RH
- sondewrpr : Balloon-borne sounding system (BBSS): research-mode winds, presssure, temp, &RH
Primary Measurements
The following measurements are those considered scientifically relevant.
Locations
- North Slope Alaska (NSA)
- Central Facility, Barrow AK (C1)
- Southern Great Plains (SGP)
- Central Facility, Lamont, OK (C1)
- Hillsboro, KS (Boundary) (B1)
- Lamont, OK (Extended, secondary) (E14)
- Morris, OK (Boundary) (B5)
- Purcell, OK (B6)
- Vici, OK (Boundary) (B4)
- Tropical Western Pacific (TWP)
- Central Facility, Darwin, Australia (C3)
- Central Facility, Manus I., PNG (C1)
- Central Facility, Nauru Island (C2)
- ARM Mobile Facility (FKB)
- Black Forest, Germany (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (GAN)
- Gan Airport, Gan Island, Maldives (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (GRW)
- Graciosa Island, Azores, Portugal (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (HFE)
- Shouxian, Anhui, China (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (NIM)
- Niamey, Niger (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (PGH)
- ARIES Observatory, Nainital, Uttarkhand, India (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (PVC)
- Highland Center, Cape Cod MA; AMF 1 (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (PYE)
- Point Reyes, CA (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (SBS)
- Steamboat Springs CO, Valley Site (M1)
Contact(s)
Richard Coulter
(630) 252-5833
rlcoulter@anl.gov
Jenni Prell
associate
630-252-7662
jprell@anl.gov
Nicki Hickmon
associate
(630) 252-7662
nhickmon@anl.gov
Michael Ritsche
associate
(630) 252-1554
mtritsche@anl.gov
Donna Holdridge
associate
(630) 252-5148
djholdridge@anl.gov