February 07, 2023
The Truth About Weather Balloons
There has been a lot of talk about weather balloons this week, and some of the information--from a certain country to our west-- has been problematic.
So let me give you the straight story on weather balloons!
Weather balloons are used by meteorologists to determine weather conditions above the surface. This is crucial because we cannot understand or forecast weather conditions without detailed knowledge of the three-dimensional structure of the atmosphere.
Two Types of Weather Balloon Systems
Some weather balloons are used to loft weather instruments that radio their observations of temperature, humidity, pressure, and wind back to the surface (see below). These devices are known as radiosondes. (see below)
Other balloons carry targets that are tracked optically from the ground. These are known as pilot balloons or pibals and can provide wind information.
Roughly 1000 radiosondes are launched twice a day around the world (see map below)
https://cliffmass.blogspot.com/2023/02/the-truth-about-weather-balloons.html
