KSC Contact: George H. Diller
Dec. 13, 1999

KSC Release No. 148-99

WEATHER BUOYS VITAL FOR FORECASTS BUT NEED SECLUSION  
        Have you recently been out fishing in the ocean and seen an
unconventional-looking buoy with a lot of unusual devices on it bobbing up
and down?  Try to avoid the temptation for a closer look!  Your presence
could unknowingly be detrimental to a vital mission.

        The unsung heroes of forecasting the weather for launching
of the Space Shuttle are actually silent weather sentinels located
offshore in the Atlantic Ocean where no human weather observer can be
stationed.  These are the automated weather buoys sending back hourly
information critical to the Shuttle weather officer during a launch
countdown.  In addition, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration's (NOAA) Spaceflight Meteorology Group in Houston counts
heavily on this offshore data to generate the forecast for landing, either
an unplanned return on launch day or a normal end-of-mission landing.

         The data is relayed from the buoys via satellite from their
station-keeping positions in the Atlantic Ocean. While the closest buoy is
only 20 nautical miles offshore from Cape Canaveral moored in the
Gulfstream of the Atlantic, another is at a far more distant location 110
nautical miles east-northeast of Cape Canaveral. The buoys are part of a
national network of ocean weather buoys operated by the National Data Buoy
Center, part of the National Weather Service at NOAA and located at the
Stennis Space Center in Mississippi.

        The information available to the forecasters is extensive
and includes sea water temperature, wave height and period information and
the customary weather data consisting of temperature, wind, humidity,
barometric pressure and precipitation.

        "This data is absolutely essential to us since we have no
other way to monitor weather data east of the Cape. The offshore sea
conditions are especially significant in developing our forecast and for
predicting conditions for solid rocket booster retrieval operations," said
Ed Priselac, Shuttle Weather Officer.

                
	This year the buoys were subjected to two severe storms,
Hurricane Floyd and Hurricane Irene.  On Sept. 15, at the height of
Hurricane Floyd, the 110-mile weather buoy went adrift, breaking loose
from its mooring in waves 50 feet and higher with 80 mile-per-hour
sustained winds and gusts exceeding 100 miles per hour. NASA's solid
rocket booster retrieval ship Freedom Star was dispatched and returned the
buoy to Port Canaveral.  A new buoy was towed out to sea by the Liberty
Star, arriving at its permanent location on Nov. 23. 

        Also this summer, the 20-nautical mile weather buoy broke
loose from its mooring, suffering damage as the result of an apparent
collision with a boat. It was returned to Port Canaveral by the U.S. Coast
Guard, but because of the extensive damage was immediately replaced with a
new weather buoy to minimize the time that weather data from this critical
location was unavailable. 

        Not only are these buoys important to meteorologists, but
also to the National Weather Service office in Melbourne, FL.  They
routinely issue the official coastal waters forecast from Flagler Beach to
Cocoa Beach to Jupiter Inlet.  The data from the buoy 20 nautical miles
offshore is absolutely critical to have accurate forecasts of wind and
seas over the area offshore from Brevard County.

       "When the buoy reports are missing, the quality of the
marine forecast suffers," said Bart Hagemeyer, Director of the National
Weather Service Melbourne office. The reports from the buoy of long-period
swells, or large swells generated by Atlantic ocean storms farther
offshore are often tip-offs that rip currents, heavy surf or even coastal
flooding may develop. 

       Mariners and surfers with local knowledge have also
developed a knack for making their own forecast by following the hourly
buoy reports and observing trends. The fishing industry and other
recreational fishing interests also find the information from these
weather buoys particularly helpful in estimating the local fishing
conditions.

      However, because these buoys are located in good fishing areas,
particularly the 20-nautical-mile buoy, fishermen have been known to
sometimes tie their boats to the buoys, or even actually fish off them,
not being aware that this affects the accuracy of the data. The buoy
itself can also be damaged, particularly if a boat should accidentally run
into it, as has happened recently. Left alone, these buoys are highly
reliable and can remain on station for six to ten years with only periodic
maintenance every two or three years. 

	The weather reports from the 20-nautical-mile buoy are
broadcast hourly on NOAA Weather Radio, heard locally at 162.55 mhz.
Information on the National Data Buoy Center's network system of 67
weather buoys can be found on the World Wide Web at http://ndbc.noaa.gov,
or by dialing the automated "Dial-a-Buoy" system at 228/688-1948. 
                                                           
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