The Response of an Open Stratospheric Balloon to the Presence of Inertio-Gravity Waves

ALEXANDER, P.; CORNEJO, J.; DE LA TORRE, A.

JOURNAL OF APPLIED METEOROLOGY

American Meteorological Society

Año: 1996 vol. 35 p. 60 - 68

0894-8763

Analytic solutions for the vertical response of an open stratospheric balloon to the presence of inertio-gravity waves during its descent are obtained. Monochromatic waves with simultaneous variations in density, velocity, and temperature are considered. Two extreme cases for the thermal conductivity of the balloon are analyzed: perfect and null. In the first case the velocity variations of the wave dominate the balloon's behavior, but in the second one the air density oscillations also become significant. It is concluded that open stratospheric balloons may behave more adiabatic than perfect conducting.