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Zenger
Zenger
Environment
Chaffin Mitchell

Here’s Why Meteorologists Launch Weather Balloons Every Day

A member of a weather team prepares a weather balloon for release during an NOAA media day to learn about a field campaign to study tornadoes, in Memphis, Tennessee on February 8, 2023. PHOTO BY  SETH HERALD/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Synchronized weather balloon launches have helped meteorologists create forecasts over the past 150 years, and now the old tradition is going high tech.

Twice a day – every day of the year – meteorologists around the world launch weather balloons at the same time from roughly 900 locations around the globe. Those balloons often reach heights of 20 miles above Earth — or twice as high as planes typically fly.

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