Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division (ATDD)

ORAU Supports ATDD's Focus on Air Quality and Climate-Related Research

The U.S. Climate Reference Network (CRN) consists of 121 stations throughout the continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii and Canada. The stations use highly accurate and reliable sensors and gauges to measure temperature, wind speed and precipitation. The network allows scientists to study the climate of an area over sustained periods, from 50 to 100 years. Pictured here is a CRN station at the Mauna Loa Slope Observatory in Hawaii.

Through the Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division (ATDD), Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) works closely with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to perform lower atmosphere research in the areas of air quality, contaminant dispersion and climate.

ATDD began as a Weather Bureau Special Projects research office in 1948 under Atomic Energy Commission sponsorship in Oak Ridge, Tenn. Major contributions to many of the classic models of air pollution dispersion have been made during its history.

ATDD continues to serve as a source of meteorological information and expertise for the U.S. Department of Energy and its contractors in Oak Ridge, though its activities have greatly expanded. It now operates primarily as a NOAA research organization.

ATDD's objectives are:

To develop better methods for predicting transport and dispersion of air pollutants
To improve modeling of air-surface exchange of water, energy and carbon, so that their effect(s) on the earth's climate may be better understood
To make high-quality measurements in support of these efforts toward increased understanding
To install and maintain a long-term, self-consistent system to monitor climate across the United States

Feature

ATDD Modernizing Historical Climatology Network to Capture the Most Accurate Climate Information

The Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division (ATDD) is participating in a pilot project to add 141 new U.S. Historical Climatology Network (USHCN) stations in the southwest climate region. The pilot project is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's goal to modernize 1,000 of its existing 1,221 USHCN stations.