Enhanced ocean boundary later observations on NDBC TAO moorings

NOAA scientists from the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory and the National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) recently deployed an updated NDBC Tropical Atmosphere Ocean (TAO) mooring to better resolve ocean boundary layer dynamics.
The enhanced mooring now provides real-time transmission of current velocity data, improved resolution of temperature and salinity in the upper 50m, and upgraded meteorological sampling (including radiation and rainfall). The goal is to continue updating a subset of TAO moorings to improve understanding of the tropical Pacific diurnal cycle, processes at the east edge of the warm pool and at the cold tongue front, and Ekman divergence from the equator.