FIRE ASTEX: Tethered Balloon Data for Marine Stratocumulus and Energy Fluxes

The eastern North Atlantic Ocean was the site of the ASTEX field experiment in June 1992. This dataset contains tethered balloon measurements from the SOFIA program, designed to study energy transfer between the sea surface and the atmospheric boundary layer. The data were collected by French research groups in cooperation with NASA to validate satellite integrations of heat, humidity, and momentum fluxes.

Use Cases

• Validate satellite-derived surface flux estimates based on coordinated in-situ and airborne measurements mentioned in the description
• Study the life cycles and radiative properties of marine stratocumulus cloud systems based on the FIRE program goals
• Investigate energy transfer (heat, humidity, momentum) at the ocean-atmosphere interface based on the SOFIA scientific objective
• Improve cloud and radiation parameterizations in General Circulation Models (GCMs) based on the FIRE experimental design

Strengths

• Data originates from a coordinated, multi-instrument field experiment (ASTEX) designed for model validation
• Supports nested-scale analysis from local to mesoscale (50 km) based on the SOFIA measurement strategy
• Combines surface, airborne, and satellite observations for a multi-perspective view as described in the mission design

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment
• Data files include legacy formats (BIN, TAR, ISO) that may require specialized tools to access

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Field observations from the SOFIA program using a tethered balloon and other instruments during the ASTEX experiment.

Time Range

June 1992

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 02:47:00.270828; freshness should be verified

Geography

Eastern North Atlantic Ocean