NOAA Observatory

• The NOAA Observatory is located on Mauna Loa on the big island of Hawaii. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) mission is to acquire, evaluate, and make available, accurate, long-term, continuous records of atmospheric gases, aerosol particles and solar radiation which affect climate, the ozone layer and baseline air quality, in time and spatial scales that allow causes of change to be understood.

• NOAA came up to this site on Mauna Loa 50 years ago because of how clean the air was. In the beginning, basic meteorological readings were the only things being measured. They are now sampling trace gases, CO 2- Greenhouse gases, and ozone depletion. At night the wind reverses so no volcanic or atmospheric contamination is present in the gas samples.

• Elevation: 11,141 feet (3,396m)

• The Keeling Building, named after Professor Charles David Keeling, measures CO 2 beginning at this site in 1958. Within two years, he saw and annual oscillation. In summer there is less CO 2 available and in winter there is more CO 2 showing the ups and downs in the graph. CO 2 levels have been dramatically increasing in the last 40 years.

• www.noaa.org – For more information on different sites and current projects throughout the world.

• Our Hawaii Field Studies tour was presented by John Barnes, who specializes in Laser Radar. He is one of 10 employees here at the Mauna Loa Observatory.

John Barnes

• Tall towers measure daily CO 2 readings.

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• Silver Dome measures ozone with a Dobson Specropetrometer.