An interpretation of radiosonde errors in the atmospheric boundary layer

Abstract The authors review sources of error in radiosonde measurements in the atmospheric boundary layer and analyze errors of two radiosonde models manufactured by Atmospheric Instrumentation Research, Inc. The authors focus on temperature and humidity lag errors and wind errors. Errors in measurement of azimuth and elevation angles and pressure over short time intervals and at higher attitudes introduce wind vector errors greater than 5 m s−1. Mean temperature and humidity lag errors were small, and collectively, these tag errors had little effect on the calculation of the vertically integrated water vapor content. However, individual large lag errors occurred with dramatic changes in the environment, such as near the surface or at the top of the boundary layer. Dual-sonde flights showed mean instrument error comparable to lag error and had little effect on the calculation of the columnar water vapor content. A hypothetical consistent error of 5% in the measurement of relative humidity in a dry environ...