COLUMBIA, S.C. — On Saturday, a high-altitude balloon was seen floating over the Carolinas including here in the Midlands. This balloon with international origins was shot down by the U.S. Military off the South Carolina coast. When it comes to weather, balloons launched here in the U.S. can be a very important tool to help forecast.
The National Weather Service operates 92 sites where they launch weather balloons at least 2 times a day. The balloon which is 5 feet in diameter is filled with hydrogen or helium and expands to up to 25 feet as it travels upward. Strings carry a parachute and small instrument called a Radiosonde.
The balloons can travel as high as 115 thousand feet and distance of up to 180 miles away from the launch site before popping and gently falling back to the ground. This at least 2 hour trip records important data from the radiosonde which resembles a milk carton but, contains instruments to record pressure, wind, dewpoint, and temperature.
Data from these launches is input into what we call a skew-t diagram that shows the weather conditions with height and is very useful for severe and winter weather forecasting.
This data also allows for weather models to correct any errors with more up to date weather information, allowing for a more accurate forecast to be made.
The closest upper air launch sites to us here in the Midlands are in Charleston and Atlanta but, given the right winds you could be seeing a balloon over your house once again.
