METEOROLOGICAL APPLICATIONS OF CONSTANT-PRESSURE BALLOON TRAJECTORIES

Abstract

The areal coverage to be expected from 300-millibar constant-pressure balloons (CPB) is examined for various numbers of releases per day from various stations. The meteorological variables which can be measured are discussed. The accuracy of balloon fixes required for useful determinations of velocity and acceleration is determined. It is shown, both theoretically and by computations from nine flights conducted by the Naval Research Laboratory in 1953, that the CPB data are adequate for the representation of the wind and pressure fields over the area covered by the trajectories. Together with radiosonde and rawin data they enable determination of the vertical velocity, but measurement of all the necessary parameters by CPB alone has not been achieved yet. There is presented an analysis of the geostrophic deviations computed from the trajectory data, including their variation with latitude, wind speed, and pressure-gradient force.