Abstract:
The Tropical Atmosphere Ocean (TAO) array of moored buoys spans the
tropical Pacific from 137E to 95W and from 8S to 8N. Moorings within
the array measure surface meteorological and upper-ocean parameters
and transmit data in realtime to shore via Service Argos. The array
is part of the in-situ measurement portion of the Tropical
Ocean-Global Atmosphere (TOGA)
... program, a 10-year (1985-1994) study of
climate variability on seasonal to interannual time scales.
TAO began in 1985 as regional-scale meridional arrays spanning the
Equator at 110W and 165E and has steadily expanded to its present size
of approximately 69 moorings. Moorings are typically separated by 2-3
degrees of latitude and 10-15 degrees of longitude. The majority of
TAO moorings are ATLAS moorings which measure surface wind, air
temperature, relative humidity, sea-surface temperature, subsurface
temperature and pressure. At a few sites along the Equator, PROTEUS
and/or current meter moorings are deployed to measure and transmit the
same surface parameters, as well as subsurface currents.
Realtime El Nino and La Nina data from the tropical Pacific Ocean is
provided by the Tropical Atmosphere Ocean / Triangle Trans-Ocean buoy
network (TAO/TRITON) of moored ocean buoys. The TAO/TRITON array is a
major component of the Global Climate Observation System, designed to
improve detection, understanding, and prediction of El Nino.
The TAO array and TAO Project are described at:
http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/tao/
TAO data is maintained on-line at PMEL
- on anonymous ftp: ftp://ftp.pmel.noaa.gov
- on the World Wide Web:
http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/tao/jsdisplay/
http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/tao/vis/explorer/t-dyn.html
TAO/TRITON Data Display:
http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/tao/jsdisplay/ 
