Drifters

Procedure
The hurricane array of drifter buoys are free drifting buoys deployed every year by Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) and NAVOCEANO, in the tropical Atlantic, prior to the hurricane season to help in the prediction and forecast of hurricanes.  The hurricane array provides forecasters with surface meteorological data in the region of hurricane development.  Normally, weather data over the oceans is observed and sent by merchant ships, but obviously these ships will divert from their normal tracks to avoid areas of rough weather so there is a dearth of data where and when it is needed most. Thus, the buoy data (and data collected by satellites and special research aircraft) are very important.

1.  Obtain the Deployment Details of the most recent buoy deployment. 

2.  Complete the table on the Student Worksheet by obtaining the Buoy ID #, the latitude and longitude of the deployment.

3.  Click on the Performance Table to obtain the most recent information about the buoy. 

4.  Record in the table the buoys status.

5.  Click on Near Real Time Tracks and Data Profiles from the GTS

6.  In the top portion of the map, type one of the alive Buoy ID numbers. 

7.  Adjust the size of the red box to increase or decrease the area of interest. 

8.  Select the appropriate dates, Initial and Final and click Go.

9.  Select the same dates from the Gulf Stream SST image archives and velocity image archives.  Use the images to confirm the path of the buoy.