Chronology
of the Tropical Atmosphere Ocean (TAO) Project
- 1976 PMEL deploys
first successful moored equatorial current meter buoy (D.Halpern)
- 1979 Start of
NOAA's EPOCS Program, includes moored current measurements at 0,110
W and CTD measurements
- 1980 First realtime
transmission of air temperature and SST from current meter mooring at
0,110W.
- Fall 82 Start
of 82/83 ENSO which clearly demonstrated the need for real-time observations
in the equatorial Pacific
- Jan 83-Mar 84
Development and testing by PMEL of prototype low cost moored thermistor
chain buoy known as the ATLAS mooring (Hayes, Milburn), supported by
ERL and PMEL.
- Oct 83 Wind speed
and directions added to real-time transmissions from current meter buoys
in eastern Pacific
- Apr 84 Prototype
ATLAS deployed in eastern Pacific at 2N, 108W with the first real-time
subsurface data from the Pacific
- Oct 84 First ATLAS
moorings deployed at 2N and 2S along 110W
- Jan 85 Start of
10-year TOGA program
- Jan 85 EPOCS funding
for 5 Atlas moorings along 110W to study the South Equatorial Current
- Jul 85 Expansion
of ATLAS moorings in the western Pacific (2N and 2S along 165E) with
TOGA and French support
- Jun 86 Winds added
to real-time ATLAS data stream
- Mar 87 The concept
of the TAO array was first presented by S.Hayes (PMEL) - at this time
only 10 ATLAS moorings deployed.
- Jul 88 ATLAS surface
and subsurface data made available over GTS network through Service
Argos
- Oct 89 TAO Project
Office set up at PMEL, S. Hayes director.
- Nov 89 First relative
humidity measurements introduced into the array (2S, 140W)
- Jan 90 Japan joins
TAO with deployment of 2N,147E ATLAS mooring onboard the R/V Natsushima
- May 90 First PROTEUS
mooring with realtime transmission of ADCP current data
- Aug 91 Rain and
radiation measurments added to current meter moorings
- Sep 91 NOAA's
National Ocean Service joins TAO with NOAA Corps billet for TAO Operations
Officer
- Feb 92 Korea joins
TAO with 137E ATLAS moorings
- Jun 92 TAO data
and displays first distributed on the internet
- Aug 92 Taiwan
joins TAO with 158E ATLAS mooring (during COARE)
- Aug 92 M.McPhaden
becomes director of TAO project after the death of S. Hayes
- Nov 92 Inauguration
of the international TAO Implementation Panel
- Jun 93 PMEL and
JAMSTEC sign an MOU for cooperative oceanic and atmospheric research,
with emphasis on the tropical Pacific
- Mar 94 TAO Home
Page on the World Wide Web
- Nov 94 Field tests
begin for the Nextgeneration ATLAS at 8S, 180
- Dec 94 TAO array
completed in Pacific Ocean with a total of 64 ATLAS moorings and 5 current
meter moorings
- Dec 94 TOGA Program
ends. Support for TAO Array in US continues from NOAA's Office of Global
Programs. International sponsorship of TAO provided by CLIVAR, GOOS,
and GCOS programs
- May 96 First operational
deployments of NextGeneration ATLAS moorings at 8S, 95W and 8S, 110W
- Aug 96 NOAA ship
KA'IMIMOANA commissioned. This ship is dedicated to servicing the TAO
array east of 165E
- Nov 97 US Congress
provides operational support for the TAO array as part of the ENSO Observing
System
- Dec 97 PMEL and
JAMSTEC renew their MOU for cooperative oceanic and atmospheric research
- Apr 98 TAO becomes
part of the GOOS Initial Observing System
- Jan 00 TAO array
becomes TAO/TRITON array. JAMSTEC occupies sites west of 165E with TRITON
moorings
- Nov 01 NextGeneration
ATLAS moorings used exclusively in TAO for the first time, as the last
standard ATLAS mooring is recovered and retired
- Dec 03 TAO wins
2003 Grace Hopper Government Technology Award
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