This portable profiling system is similar to the weather balloon instrumentation used by the National Weather Service and other upper-air measuring stations located around the world. The hands-on experience is intended to help students appreciate the errors inherent in some of these measurements. Coming soon I will add a more detailed description of the system, and an explanation of how the sensors work.
Students watch the balloon rise through the atmosphere.
This particular balloon rose to an altitude of 35,000 feet before the signal was lost.