U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Https

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock () or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Breadcrumb

  1. Home

Earth System Research Laboratory Ozone Water Vapor Group Water Vapor Flight Measurements

The Ozone and Water Vapor Group is part of NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL) in Boulder, CO. The Ozone Water Vapor Group conducts research on the nature and causes of the depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer and the role of stratospheric and tropospheric ozone and water vapor in forcing climate change and in modifying the chemical cleaning capacity of the atmosphere. This is accomplished through long-term observations and intensive field programs that measure ozone and water vapor levels in the upper troposphere and stratosphere. The Reference Network used by the Ozone and Water Vapor Group is part of NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory in Boulder, CO. The measurement programs include Total Column Ozone Measurements (Dobson Ozone), Surface Ozone Measurements, Ozonesonde Measurements using balloons, and Water Vapor measurements using balloons.

Since 1980, the Ozone and Water Vapor group has made in situ measurements of atmospheric water vapor mixing ratios (mole fractions) from the lower free troposphere (~2 km) up to the middle stratosphere (~28 km). These measurements are made using a balloon-borne payload including a NOAA frost point hygrometer, an electrochemical concentration cell, ozonesonde, and a radiosonde to measure temperature, pressure, and payload location via GPS. The payloads are built and calibrated in the laboratory in Boulder, CO. These hygrometers are flown monthly from Boulder to Hilo, Hawaii and Lauder, New Zealand. The primary research focus is the long-term monitoring of upper tropospheric and lower stratospheric water vapor and the processes that control its abundance in the atmosphere. Water vapor is a natural and important component of the Earth's atmosphere. The distribution of water vapor influences physical and chemical properties of the atmosphere (weather, clouds, precipitation, radiation balance, convective uplift, lightning generation, and ozone chemistry) as well as its effects on the Earth's energy budget. Variations in the amounts of water vapor in the atmosphere are natural and normal, but changes in its vertical distribution may be indicative of changes in the Earth's climate which is of great interest.

About this Dataset

Updated: 2024-08-20
Metadata Last Updated: 2025-11-20T02:55:28.485Z
Date Created: N/A
Data Provided by:
Dataset Owner: N/A

Access this data

Contact dataset owner Access URL
Table representation of structured data
Title Earth System Research Laboratory Ozone Water Vapor Group Water Vapor Flight Measurements
Description The Ozone and Water Vapor Group is part of NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL) in Boulder, CO. The Ozone Water Vapor Group conducts research on the nature and causes of the depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer and the role of stratospheric and tropospheric ozone and water vapor in forcing climate change and in modifying the chemical cleaning capacity of the atmosphere. This is accomplished through long-term observations and intensive field programs that measure ozone and water vapor levels in the upper troposphere and stratosphere. The Reference Network used by the Ozone and Water Vapor Group is part of NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory in Boulder, CO. The measurement programs include Total Column Ozone Measurements (Dobson Ozone), Surface Ozone Measurements, Ozonesonde Measurements using balloons, and Water Vapor measurements using balloons. Since 1980, the Ozone and Water Vapor group has made in situ measurements of atmospheric water vapor mixing ratios (mole fractions) from the lower free troposphere (~2 km) up to the middle stratosphere (~28 km). These measurements are made using a balloon-borne payload including a NOAA frost point hygrometer, an electrochemical concentration cell, ozonesonde, and a radiosonde to measure temperature, pressure, and payload location via GPS. The payloads are built and calibrated in the laboratory in Boulder, CO. These hygrometers are flown monthly from Boulder to Hilo, Hawaii and Lauder, New Zealand. The primary research focus is the long-term monitoring of upper tropospheric and lower stratospheric water vapor and the processes that control its abundance in the atmosphere. Water vapor is a natural and important component of the Earth's atmosphere. The distribution of water vapor influences physical and chemical properties of the atmosphere (weather, clouds, precipitation, radiation balance, convective uplift, lightning generation, and ozone chemistry) as well as its effects on the Earth's energy budget. Variations in the amounts of water vapor in the atmosphere are natural and normal, but changes in its vertical distribution may be indicative of changes in the Earth's climate which is of great interest.
Modified 2025-11-20T02:55:28.485Z
Publisher Name N/A
Contact N/A
Keywords Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Water Vapor , Atmospheric - Composition - Ozone , Atmospheric - Upper-air - Upper-air Water Vapour , Continent > North America > United States Of America > Colorado , Continent > Australia/New Zealand > New Zealand , Continent > North America > United States Of America > Hawaii , Vertical Location > Troposphere , Vertical Location > Stratosphere , ESRL > Earth System Research Laboratory (NOAA) , RADIOSONDES , GPS , BALLOONS , RADIOSONDES , > 1 km , Weekly - HTML Markup Was Removed , DOC/NOAA/ESRL/GMD > Global Monitoring Division, Earth System Research Laboratory, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce , DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NCEI > National Centers for Environmental Information, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce , WEATHER BALLOON , climatologyMeteorologyAtmosphere
{
    "identifier": "gov.noaa.ncdc:C01564",
    "accessLevel": "public",
    "contactPoint": {
        "@type": "vcard:Contact",
        "fn": "Your contact point",
        "hasEmail": "mailto:[email protected]"
    },
    "programCode": [
        "010:000"
    ],
    "landingPage": "",
    "title": "Earth System Research Laboratory Ozone Water Vapor Group Water Vapor Flight Measurements",
    "description": "The Ozone and Water Vapor Group is part of NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL) in Boulder, CO. The Ozone Water Vapor Group conducts research on the nature and causes of the depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer and the role of stratospheric and tropospheric ozone and water vapor in forcing climate change and in modifying the chemical cleaning capacity of the atmosphere. This is accomplished through long-term observations and intensive field programs that measure ozone and water vapor levels in the upper troposphere and stratosphere. The Reference Network used by the Ozone and Water Vapor Group is part of NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory in Boulder, CO. The measurement programs include Total Column Ozone Measurements (Dobson Ozone), Surface Ozone Measurements, Ozonesonde Measurements using balloons, and Water Vapor measurements using balloons. \n\nSince 1980, the Ozone and Water Vapor group has made in situ measurements of atmospheric water vapor mixing ratios (mole fractions) from the lower free troposphere (~2 km) up to the middle stratosphere (~28 km). These measurements are made using a balloon-borne payload including a NOAA frost point hygrometer, an electrochemical concentration cell, ozonesonde, and a radiosonde to measure temperature, pressure, and payload location via GPS. The payloads are built and calibrated in the laboratory in Boulder, CO.  These hygrometers are flown monthly from Boulder to Hilo, Hawaii and Lauder, New Zealand. The primary research focus is the long-term monitoring of upper tropospheric and lower stratospheric water vapor and the processes that control its abundance in the atmosphere. Water vapor is a natural and important component of the Earth's atmosphere. The distribution of water vapor influences physical and chemical properties of the atmosphere (weather, clouds, precipitation, radiation balance, convective uplift, lightning generation, and ozone chemistry) as well as its effects on the Earth's energy budget. Variations in the amounts of water vapor in the atmosphere are natural and normal, but changes in its vertical distribution may be indicative of changes in the Earth's climate which is of great interest.",
    "language": "",
    "distribution": [
        {
            "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
            "mediaType": "application\/json",
            "accessURL": "https:\/\/www.ncei.noaa.gov\/metadata\/geoportal\/\/rest\/metadata\/item\/gov.noaa.ncdc%3AC01564"
        },
        {
            "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
            "mediaType": "text\/html",
            "accessURL": "https:\/\/www.ncei.noaa.gov\/metadata\/geoportal\/\/rest\/metadata\/item\/gov.noaa.ncdc%3AC01564\/html"
        },
        {
            "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
            "mediaType": "application\/xml",
            "accessURL": "https:\/\/www.ncei.noaa.gov\/metadata\/geoportal\/\/rest\/metadata\/item\/gov.noaa.ncdc%3AC01564\/xml"
        },
        {
            "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
            "mediaType": "application\/octet-stream",
            "accessURL": "https:\/\/www.ncei.noaa.gov\/pub\/data\/metadata\/images\/C01564.jpg"
        }
    ],
    "bureauCode": [
        "010:04"
    ],
    "modified": "2025-11-20T02:55:28.485Z",
    "publisher": {
        "@type": "org:Organization",
        "name": "Your Publisher"
    },
    "theme": "",
    "keyword": [
        "Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Water Vapor",
        "Atmospheric - Composition - Ozone",
        "Atmospheric - Upper-air - Upper-air Water Vapour",
        "Continent > North America > United States Of America > Colorado",
        "Continent > Australia\/New Zealand > New Zealand",
        "Continent > North America > United States Of America > Hawaii",
        "Vertical Location > Troposphere",
        "Vertical Location > Stratosphere",
        "ESRL > Earth System Research Laboratory (NOAA)",
        "RADIOSONDES",
        "GPS",
        "BALLOONS",
        "RADIOSONDES",
        "> 1 km",
        "Weekly - HTML Markup Was Removed",
        "DOC\/NOAA\/ESRL\/GMD > Global Monitoring Division, Earth System Research Laboratory, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce",
        "DOC\/NOAA\/NESDIS\/NCEI > National Centers for Environmental Information, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce",
        "WEATHER BALLOON",
        "climatologyMeteorologyAtmosphere"
    ]
}