GSD/GOSA supports the El Nino Rapid Response Mission

Photo of dropsondes being loaded on to the Global Hawk.

Dropsondes being loaded onto the Global Hawk. They will be methodically dropped over ocean areas where data is sparse to provide extra weather measurements to learn about El Nino and how atmospheric models represent the event.

NOAA scientists and partners have embarked on a land, sea, and air campaign in the tropical Pacific to study the current El Niño and gather data in an effort to improve weather forecasts thousands of miles away.

The El Niño Rapid Response Field Campaign is deploying NOAA’s Gulfstream IV research plane and NOAA Ship Ronald H. Brown, NASA’s Global Hawk unmanned aircraft equipped with specialized sensors, and researchers stationed on Kiritimati (Christmas) Island in the Republic of Kiribati, approximately 1,340 miles south of Honolulu. Together, scientists will collect atmospheric data from this vast and remote expanse of the tropical Pacific where El Niño-driven weather systems are spawned.

GSD/Global Observing System Analysis Group (GOSA) is providing real-time forecast sensitivity maps to identify areas where observations are lacking resulting in less accurate forecasts, and real-time ensemble forecasts. These products provide guidance to help Global Hawk/SHOUT target mission domains and planning during ENSO Rapid Response.

Photo of dropsondes being loaded on to the Global Hawk. Image of the Global Hawk in the California hangar. Image of the Global Hawk in the California hangar.

The Global Hawk Unmanned Aircraft System in its California hangar - getting prepped for deployment in the Sensing Hazards with Operational Unmanned Technology (SHOUT) project.

For more information contact: Susan Cobb 303-497-5093