The Aerology program measures conditions in the upper atmosphere. Twice a day a small package' of sensors - the radiosonde - is carried aloft by a hydrogen-filled balloon to altitudes in excess of 35 kilometers. As it rises through the upper atmosphere - through the troposphere and into the stratosphere - the radiosonde measures temperature, humidity, pressure, wind speed and direction. The data is transmitted to the station where it is analysed, reduced to a coded message, and sent to the regional headquarters of the Meteorological Service of Canada, in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

This aerological program is part of a global network which includes 30 Canadian sites, and some 800 sites worldwide. At all these stations, balloons and radiosondes are released at the same time, 11:15 and 23:15 GMT. The information is used for weather forecasting.

The discipline of aerology - using radiosondes and balloons - began in 1944. Sable Island has been involved in the program since the beginning.

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