Observations of dynamic turbulence in the lower stratosphere over Inner Mongolia using a high-resolution balloon sensor constant temperature anemometer

We present characterizations of the dynamic turbulence in the lower stratosphere measured by a new balloon-based system designed for detecting finer scale dynamic turbulence. The balloon-based system included a constant temperature anemometer (CTA) operating at a sampling rate of 2 kHz at an ascent speed of 5 m/s (corresponding to a vertical resolution of 2.5 mm), an industrial personal computer, batteries, sensors for ambient temperature and humidity, an A/D converter and others. The system was successfully launched to 24 km altitude over Bayannur City, Inner Mongolia Province. Results show the spatial intermittence of the turbulence layers, with clear boundaries between turbulent and non-turbulent regions. This is the first time that the dynamic turbulence spectrum down to the viscous sub-range has been obtained throughout the lower stratosphere over China. With that, the energy dissipation rates of dynamic turbulence could be calculated with high precision. The profile of the dissipation rates varies from 7.37×10−7 to 4.23 W/kg and increases with altitude in the stratosphere.