These pictures show the two ships used in the VOCALS field campaign.
Images courtesy of NOAA and IMARPE.
Research Ships Used in the VOCALS Campaign
There are two ships in the VOCALS field campaign. Both of the ships carry many special scientific instruments. Scientists use those instruments to make measurements of the clouds and the air above them. They also use the instruments to study the sea below them. At the same time, satellites and aircraft fly overhead and take other measurements. The scientists compare the measurements from the satellites, aircraft, and ships. It helps them see the "big picture" of what's going on in the VOCALS study area.
One of the VOCALS ships is the Research Vessel Ronald H. Brown. The Ron Brown is owned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the USA. Its home port is Charleston, South Carolina. The ship is named in honor of the former
Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce,
Ronald H. Brown.
The second VOCALS ship is from Peru. It is owned by the Instituto del Mar del Perú (IMARPE). The ship's name is the Research Vessel José Olaya Balandra. José Olaya Balandra was a fisherman who became a national hero during Peru's fight for independence from Spain in the early 1800s. The ship's home port is Lima, Peru.
There are also several buoys off the South American coast. The buoys take measurements of the ocean and atmosphere, too. VOCALS also uses data from those buoys.
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