In-Situ Measurements of Temperature Fluctuation and Vertical Wind Shear for Altitudes up to 30 km in the Atmosphere

An atmospheric profiling system has been developed at the University of Tennessee Space Institute. The system consists of temperature, pressure, humidity, relative wind, and a Global Positioning System GPS to track the payload’s position. A data logger unit was integrated into the instrument for saving measured atmospheric properties. The atmospheric profiling system was carried through the troposphere and up to the middle region of the stratosphere layer using high altitude balloons. The balloon is assumed to follow a Lagrangian path where the relative horizontal wind represents turbulent perturbations (i.e. gusts). The Parcel theory (a numerical model) used in meteorology to predict atmospheric instability and the Richardson number schemes used for turbulence were adopted in investigating the presence of turbulence indicators. Theories and terminologies relevant for the analysis of turbulence are described and the results from both methods were analyzed and compared.