Modular Micro-Weather Station for Use in Open Ocean and Coastal Marine Environments

NOAA collects meteorological measurements in open ocean and coastal marine environments from research vessels, data buoys and commercial ships for use in numerical weather prediction, global climate change research, and severe storm identification. The current system cost for robust marine automated meteorological stations is too high to allow ubiquitous use on all the available platforms. Through this SBIR award ADA Technologies will develop a cost effective, modular micro-weather station for use in marine environments. ADA will leverage an existing miniature self-networking sensor pod developed for military applications. The final modular system will weigh a few pounds and 1) measure meteorological parameters, 2) measure GPS location and spatial orientation to correct for platform motions, 3) contain integral communications to transfer data on a routine basis, 4) use a plug-and-play port for additional sensors. In Phase II, other sensors such as cloud cover, cloud height and horizontal visibility will be added.