FY 1997

Real-time distribution of data from the TAO moored buoy array in the tropical Pacific

Soreide, N.N., and M.J. McPhaden

In Eco-Informa '96, Global Networks for Environmental Information, Lake Buena Vista, FL, 4–7 November 1996, 359–365 (1996)

The Tropical Atmosphere-Ocean (TAO) buoy array consists of 70 moored buoys spanning the equatorial Pacific basin from 95°W to 137°E, measuring atmospheric and oceanic parameters and telemetering data in real time via the Argos satellite system. Supported by an international consortium, TAO is a major component of the global climate observing system. Data from the TAO buoys are distributed in real time to remote users via the Internet and the World Wide Web, with convenient point-and-click access via Unix/X-windows or Web browsers such as Netscape. Remote users receive real-time data acquired and processed at PMEL during the previous night as well as historical data. Graphical displays and animations include data measured by the buoys, including atmospheric wind, temperature and relative humidity, and ocean temperatures and currents, as well as parameters calculated from the buoy data, such as dynamic height, depth of the 20° isotherm, heat content and transport. Also included are related data sets, such as operational analyses from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP), TOGA drifting buoy data and TOPEX/POSEIDON data. TAO data access is described in the TAO home page on the Web at http:// www.pmel.noaa.gov/toga-tao/.