Weatherwatch: mapping the wind is a challenging quest

From weather ballons to the Aerosol Wind Profiler on a Gulfstream jet, measuring gales is a developing scienceMeasuring wind speed is challenging because of the dramatic variation with altitude. The air can be still at ground level while a gale is blowing at 10,000ft. Meteorologists rely on measurements made by twice-daily weather balloon launches from sites around the world, supplemented with data gathered by commercial airliners and satellite observation of cloud movements.In the quest for more detailed wind data, Nasa and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) have been carrying out test flights with the Aerosol Wind Profiler (AWP) on a Gulfstream jet since late 2024. Continue reading...