In 2022, the U.S. Bipartisan Infrastructure Law paid for a hot ticket item at the NOAA National Data Buoy Center. The bill offered $20 million to help completely overhaul its headline act: the Tropical Atmosphere Ocean (TAO) array.
The first TAO buoys have been swaying with the waves in the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean since 1985. The original array was completed in 1994, and a long-term project began in 2014 to modernize the act. But the latest round of improvements will be the most substantial yet.
As the star of the National Data Buoy Center, the TAO array is located on a very important stage. El Niño and La Niña climate patterns originate in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. These patterns affect global climate. Better buoys will allow for better insights into complex ocean-atmosphere interactions across the region.
The upgraded buoys will be able to hit lower notes than ever before. They’ll make up to seven additional measurements of the mixed layer near the ocean surface, from 10 meters deep down to 60 meters deep. This will allow scientists to better understand how the mixed layer changes during El Niño and La Niña events. It will also help researchers better simulate these events in models. Both will lead to better predictions and preparedness for the main audience: the public.
Barometric pressure, rain, and solar radiation measurements will be added to the array’s repertoire. These observations will all be transmitted at a faster rhythm, every ten minutes. Currently, observations are only transmitted hourly.
The new upgrades will remove 12 buoy locations and add five. These changes should help scientists get in tune with the northern Intertropical Convergence Zone. This area is where the northeast and southeast trade winds join for a jam session during the Northern Hemisphere summer. Better wind and rain observations will give scientists a closer listen to what’s happening during that annual event. They’ll be able to ground-truth satellite-based wind estimates in areas with heavy rain. They'll also see real-time data in parts of the ocean where many tropical cyclones are born.
Some of the players in the improved array will be capable of observing real-time ocean current data—not only at the surface but at depth, up to 315 meters (about the height of the Empire State Building in New York City). A band of these enhanced buoys along a north-south line from 2°N-2°S at 140°W will track the equatorial undercurrent when it is shallow. The equatorial undercurrent brings heat eastward across the length of the tropical Pacific Ocean at depths of 50 to 200 meters. It plays a vital role in El Niño and La Niña events.
The upgrades will continue through 2027 as new buoys are deployed and the entire network gets new sensors and payloads. The National Data Buoy Center is part of NOAA's National Weather Service, charged with collecting and broadcasting marine observations in real-time.