Flights through S Ike Solitons

Transcription

1 NW NE W MIM January 2009 SW SE Flights through S Ike Solitons Medals and barometers Undersecretary rewards VOS observers

2 Ship in the spotlight! Anjeliersgracht 2 MIM January 2009 Build: 1990, Owner: Spliethoff Beheer B.V., VOS: since July 1990, OBS: over 6000.

3 From the editors desk Medals and barometers The PMO-Office announces Back to the shore: Herfst Flights through Ike And the certificates go to Results Top 10 list Dutch PMO-Office /678 René Rozeboom PMO Bert de Vries PMO Peter Westenbrink Assistent PMO Publicationyear 22, number 79 ISSN: Adress: KNMI, Sector I-WIS PMO- Office Postbus AE De Bilt PMO-OFFICE@knmi.nl Red.Telephone: Inmarsat-C Mobile: (581) Colophon MIM is a quarteredition from the Department Waarneem- Infrastructuur of the KNMI. This magazine is ment for those who take part on board of ships and platforms, which accomplisch and release meteorological observations. Using articles is permitted when the source is mentioned and an example of the publication is forwarded to the KNMI. * Editing: P.M. Westenbrink Colleagues De Bilt: R.J. Rozeboom A. de Vries Corrector English text: D. Suri (Met Office) Fotographs (unless different): KNMI Lay-out and printing: Studio/Printcentre KNMI MIM January

4 From the editors desk Peter Westenbrink Winter. Op het noordelijk halfrond, 68º noorderbreedte, valt sneeuw. Het bereikt de grond niet. De temperatuur ligt ver beneden nul: -45º C overdag, -95º C s nachts. Een licht briesje strijkt langs een microfoontje. Het registreert niets. De zon komt amper boven de horizon uit. De Phoenix geeft nauwelijks teken van leven. Op het laatst werken alleen de meteorologische instrumenten nog. Dan wordt het 10 november 2008 en trekt de NASA de stekker eruit. Na ruim vijf maanden is het weer stil op Mars. Niet in De Bilt. Daar klinken opgewonden stemmen. In de centrale hal van het KNMI reikt de staatssecretaris van Verkeer en Waterstaat, Tineke Huizinga, medailles en barometers uit aan zeevarenden. Ik heb geen idee of ze weten dat de bevroren woestijn van de rode planeet zeewater bevat. De groene polder. Grondwaterdeskundige Perry de Louw mist de strenge winters, de wakken in het ijs waaruit vogels drinken. Minder gecharmeerd is hij van gelijksoortige wellen in het landschap. Er borrelt zeewater uit op waardoor het oppervlaktewater verzilt. Oeroud zeewater dat 500 tot 5500 jaar geleden Nederland overspoelde. De NASA zoekt naar leven. De Louw zoekt naar een oplossing voor onze drinkwatervoorziening. De VOSvloot ondertussen gaat rustig verder met weerkundige observaties doen. Na 2011 geautomatiseerd. Varende robotten, zoals de marslander. Winter. At latitude 68º north, snow falls. It doesn t reach the surface. Temperature is far below zero: -45º C by day, -95º C by night. A light breeze strikes a little microphone, but it records nothing. The sun barely rises above the horizon. The Phoenix gives barely a sign of life. In the end only the meteorological instruments are still working. Then it s 10 November 2008 and NASA pulls the plug. After five months it s silent again on Mars. In De Bilt it isn t. Excited voices can be heard. In the KNMI main hall the Undersecretary of Transport and Public Works, Tineke Huizinga, awards seaman with a medal or barometer. I have no idea if they know the frozen dessert of the red planet contains seawater. The green polder. Soil water expert Perry de Louw misses the strong winters, the ice-holes which birds drink from. He s less enthusiastic about other some kinds of well in the landscape. Seawater is bubbling up from them, turning the surface water brackish. Ancient seawater that flooded the Netherlands 500 to 5500 years ago. NASA searches for life. Mr. de Louw searches for a solution to our drinking-water supply. The VOS-fleet meanwhile goes on regularly making weather observations. Automated after Sailing robots, like the Mars Lander. 4 MIM January 2009

5 The editors picture At source Steamboat Geyser, Yellowstone National Park Photo: Mila Zinkova MIM January

6 Medals and barometers Undersecretary rewards VOS observers A memorable day for the those concerned. A lot of experienced seamen grounded in De Bilt on Monday the 10th November 2008 when Captains and Officers from both merchant shipping companies and the Navy were awarded medals and barometers for their contribution to meteorological services. They received these rewards from Undersecretary Tineke Huizinga from the Ministry of Transport and Water management. In her speech she underlined the importance of the observations from these Blue Giants as she called the seas and oceans. One of the Officers rewarded was Mr. Leo Versteeg, employed as Captain at Hapag Lloyd. After the ceremony he declared, I am genuinely pleased with this silver medal. I ve participated in this project since This is quite a while. I know it is important, but today I learned from the speech from Mr. Brouwer (director KNMI) and Mrs. Huizinga why these observations are so useful. Especially given the ongoing climatological change, the meteorological institutes worldwide seem to need the observations more than ever. Real motivation to continue!. Mr. Pronk from Svitzer Ocean Towage BV and Mr. Daane from Spliethoff Beheer BV received gold medals. The Royal Navy was rewarded with a tablet. This tablet was presented to Commander Hans Lodder on behalf of the rewarded officers from Hr. Ms. Tromp. In his welcoming speech KNMI 6 MIM January 2009

7 director Mr. Brouwer spoke about the importance of the observations for the end-users. He finished with the decision to automate the VOS: From the E-SURFMAR (European SURFace MARine program) comes the initiative to automate the VOS Observations. This initiative has consequences for the Dutch Ship Observations. The policy is aimed at austerity measures to reduce inspection work and gather more meteorological data from participating vessels. Denmark started this development. Support from Shipping Companies and officers remains inevitable, but the nature of this support will change. A number of observations is will be made by hand but the main focus will be at support and functioning of the AWS (Automated Weather Station). This development will not occur overnight but will take a considerable amount of time. Automation of observations has also consequences for meetings like this. The KNMI will continue to show its gratitude to those involved in the future, but this gratitude will have a different character. The amount of observations will no longer be the main basis for issuing rewards. MIM January

8 The Director closed his speech with an old Dutch saying, If you move the piano everybody offers to carry the stool!. You don t do that! You voluntarily participated as a VOS ship making observations night and day, and I sincerely thank you for that. GOLD M.K. Daane Spliethoff Beheer B.V. C. Pronk Svitzer Ocean Towage B.V. SILVER L.J.P. Versteeg Hapag Lloyd J. Visser Holland Ship Service P.J.E. Dekker P. van den Oever Jo Tankers B.V. N.J.J. Sinnige Kahn P.J. Rommers Kustvaartbedrijf Moerman B.V. J. Klein W. Lindeboom Maersk Ship Management J.C. Ellen NIOZ A.J.M. Buijs R.C. Koningstein P.E.W.M. van Boxtel Seatrade Groningen B.V. F.S. Piscaer W.A. Bouwmeester J. Speelberg G.W. de Graaff. R.F. Scheffel. R.F. Berger Spliethoff Beheer B.V. 8 MIM January 2009

9 P. Heerema Svitzer Ocean Towage B.V. H.J. Otte B. Crum Vroon Ship Management B.V. BAROMETER J. de Vos Anthony Veder Rederijzaken A.F. Bijlstra H.F.M. Kat M.N.W. Boshuyzen G.J. Wijnands Broere Shipping Services B.V. C.J. van der Steen Holland Ship Service J.M. Semeins Jo Tankers B.V. E.V. Tijssen Maersk Ship Management G. Ros Min. v. Landbouw en Visserij E.A. Puijman NIOZ J.H. Levis Noble Corp. G. Bosch Oceanwide Offshore Services B.V. C.J. Metselaar P.R. Moentadi R. Hartsema Spliethoff Beheer B.V. L.C. Arizobal Vroon Ship Management B.V. TABLET Hr. Ms. Tromp Royal Navy MIM January

10 KNMI HOOFDDIRECTEUR FRITS BROUWER SPRAK IN ZIJN WELKOMSSPEECH OVER HET VOORGENOMEN BESLUIT OM DE VOS-VLOOT TE AUTOMATISEREN: Vanuit het SURFMAR programma is ook het initiatief gekomen om het doen van scheepswaarnemingen te automatiseren. Dit initiatief heeft consequenties voor de Nederlandse scheepswaarnemingen. Het beleid is er op gericht om het doen van waarnemingen te automatiseren met als doel een besparing van de KNMI inspectiewerkzaamheden en nog meer meetgegevens vanaf hetzelfde schip. Een land als Denemarken ging ons daarin voor. De steun van de rederijen en zeevarenden blijft voor het doen van deze waarnemingen onmisbaar, maar de aard van deze steun zal veranderen. Een aantal waarnemingen zal nog steeds handmatig geschieden, maar de ondersteuning zal zich met name richten op het goed laten functioneren van het automatische weerstation. Deze ontwikkeling zal niet van vandaag op morgen gerealiseerd zijn, maar een aantal jaren in beslag nemen. Automatisering van de scheepswaarnemingen heeft ook consequenties voor een bijeenkomst als deze. Het KNMI wil ook in de toekomst zijn waardering laten blijken aan alle betrokkenen, maar deze waardering zal een ander karakter dienen te krijgen. Immers het aantal uitgevoerde waarnemingen is dan geen goede basis meer voor het uitreiken van beloningen. 10 MIM January 2009

11 The PMO Office announces Temperature and humidity measurement In the October issue of this publication the measurement of pressure was discussed. Pressure readings should be made as close as possible to the hour of observation. For temperature and humidity measurements this is less important since temperature and humidity changes gradually most of the time. The Dutch VOS ships are all equipped with a sling psychrometer. Don t use the ship s screen thermometer and wet bulb thermometer even if they are available since they are not certified for making weather observations. Some of the KNMI sling psychrometers contain mercury thermometers, other contain (blue) alcohol thermometers. Mercury regulations will result in the use of only alcohol thermometers in the near future. the condenser will generally be more suitable than ordinary fresh water. The psychrometer observation should be made to the windward side. Whirling or rotating the thermometers by hand at a controlled rate ensures the necessary ventilation. Sling psychrometers lacking radiation shields for the thermometer bulbs should be shielded from direct insolation in some other way. When the maximum difference between wet bulb temperature and regular temperature has been reached, the measurement is ready. Thermometers should be read at once after aspiration ceases! Don t forget to change the wick in time. The wick (free of grease and not contaminated by salt spray) must be moistened with distilled water. If this is not readily available, water from MIM January

12 Normale temperatuur en hoeveelheid neerslag, zonnig Rob Sluijter Klimaatdata en advies, KNMI Herfst 2008 Kleurloze herfst, maar wel een winters slot TEMPERATUUR De gemiddelde temperatuur deze herfst is in De Bilt uitgekomen op 10,2 C, precies gelijk aan het langjarig gemiddelde. Zowel in september als oktober lag de gemiddelde temperatuur met 13,6 C en 10,1 C iets beneden de normaal van 14,2 C, respectievelijk 10,3 C. November was vrij zacht met een gemiddelde temperatuur van 6,9 C tegen een langjarig gemiddelde van 6,2 C. In totaal werden deze herfst in De Bilt zeven warme dagen genoteerd (maximumtemperatuur 20,0 C of hoger), tegen 12 normaal. Zes van de zeven warme dagen vielen in de eerste helft van september. Op 11 september werd het in De Bilt zelfs zomers warm (maximumtemperatuur 25,0 C of hoger). De landelijk hoogste temperatuur deze herfst werd die dag genoteerd in Maastricht: 27,3 C. Op 28 oktober daalde de temperatuur in De Bilt, voor het eerst na het zomerseizoen, tot onder het vriespunt. In totaal telde de herfst er negen vorstdagen (minimumtemperatuur lager dan 0,0 C), tegen zeven normaal. In de avond van 24 november werd het in Deelen -7,2 C, de landelijk laagste temperatuur deze herfst. NEERSLAG Gemiddeld over het land viel 238 mm neerslag, vrijwel gelijk aan het langjarig gemiddelde van 235 mm. Van de afzonderlijke maanden was september aan de droge kant met 63 mm, tegen een langjarig gemiddelde van 75 mm. Oktober was, met 94 mm tegen 78 mm normaal, vrij nat. In november was de hoeveelheid neerslag met 82 mm precies gelijk aan het langjarig gemiddelde. De meeste neerslag viel, zoals meestal in de herfst, in een brede kuststrook. Van de KNMI-stations was De Kooy het natst met 353 mm. Het zuidoosten verliep een stuk droger met op het KNMI-station Arcen niet meer dan 149 mm. In De Bilt werd 277 mm afgetapt tegen 230 mm normaal. Het noordwesten van het land had op 5 oktober te maken met wateroverlast. Op sommige plaatsen viel daar minstens 80 mm in 18 uur. Een dergelijke hoeveelheid neerslag wordt op een willekeurige plaats minder dan eens per 100 jaar geëvenaard of overschreden. Op 21 november veroorzaakten zeer zware windstoten van ca km/uur in vooral het westen en zuiden overlast. Op 23 november sneeuwde het urenlang in een groot deel van het land. Op de Veluwe ontstond een sneeuwdek van 10 tot 17 cm. Tijdens de nacht van 24 op 25 november was het met name in het midden en zuiden van het land verraderlijk glad. Tientallen ongevallen waren het gevolg. ZONNESCHIJN Met gemiddeld over het land 336 uren zonneschijn tegen 302 uren normaal was de herfst zonnig. De zon liet zich 12 MIM January 2009

13 in september en oktober vaker zien dan normaal mag worden verwacht. September telde 158 en oktober 128 zonuren tegen 136, respectievelijk 105 uren normaal. Het aantal zonuren in november was 51 tegen 60 normaal. Het zonnigst was de herfst in het zuidwestelijk kustgebied, het minst zonnig in het noordoosten van het land. Van de KNMI-stations had Wilhelminadorp in Zeeland de meeste zonuren: 372. Eelde registreerde met 295 het minste aantal uren.. In De Bilt scheen de zon 334 uren tegen normaal 298. Vorig jaar Herfst was in De Bilt de gemiddelde temperatuur 10,2 C, het aantal uren zonneschijn 307 en de neerslagsom 187 mm. Normaal=het langjarig gemiddelde over het tijdvak MIM January

14 Flights through Ike An eye-witness account. A special experience I ll long cherish. In September 2008 KNMI senior scientist Ad Stoffelen flew through Hurricanes Hanna and Ike taking measurements. He is responsible for measuring wind data with scatterometers (wind measuring instruments on board satellites). These scatterometers need to be properly calibrated, particularly in threatening weather systems such as hurricanes. To do so, research flights are made in aircraft equipped with scatterometers through hurricanes. Ad spent ten days on these research flights, and here his experiences with Ike are reported. Kermit Two years ago Paul Chang from NOAA called and asked if EUMETSAT (the European organisation for developing weather satellites) would be interested in setting up an experiment with the hurricane hunters. The idea was to improve the accuracy of measurements of hurricane winds over sea made by the ASCAT scatterometer. Detailed wind observations would be made from an aircraft at the same time as the ASCAT satellite made its measurements and then these observations would be compared to hopefully improve the interpretation of the satellite measurements. NOAA s National Hurricane Center has great interest in this work because ASCAT can penetrate cloud and rain to provide unique wind information about the intensity and structure of hurricanes. This is obviously of huge importance in forecasting the track and intensity of the hurricane. Paul Chang s offer was very interesting. They had an aeroplane, called Kermit, equipped with unique instruments, spare flying hours and a crew. We had to simply send someone along to fly with them to ensure the aeroplane made measurements at the right time and place in the hurricane relative to the ASCAT instrument. Risk Of course it occurred to me immediately that there d be risk flying in hurricanes. Fear can often be conquered by trust and understanding. This was also the case here. Take, for example, the crew, one of whom has been involved in flying through hurricanes for 30 years. Outside the hurricane season the pilots and navigator work in defence and have lots of experience with Lockheed Orion P3 aircraft. These aircraft have flown many more hours and are exposed to much more intensive manoeuvres than Kermit has been in the last 30 years. For example, I heard from one pilot that one of these Orion P3s was recently written off because during a manoeuvre a pilot exposed the aircraft to force seven times that of gravity, causing a wing to be torn off. Luckily the pilot lived to tell the tale. A hurricane is clearly less of a test for an Orion P3. Medal In January 2007 I took part in a research flight around Newfoundland, just east of Canada. There too the research programme was very successful and we measured winds of almost 150 km/hour. I was only just back on Dutch soil when I had an from Kermit telling me, I don t think we re gonna make it. Luckily after three quarters of an hour there followed a relieved phone call saying that Kermit had managed to safely return to land after all. Through the sheer size of the storm too much salt got into the propellers from the precipitation 14 MIM January 2009

15 and three of the four motors broke down. Just fifteen seconds before the plane would ditch the pilots got one a second propeller to work again allowing an immediate return to base. After this incident flight procedures were amended, even for the Tropics where such a problem had never occurred. Safety above everything else, but I d underestimated this, just like the experienced hurricane hunters. How glad I was that I was at home, even though I missed out on the gold medals the crew were awarded. September 2: sandals With faith in the new operating procedures I travelled to Tampa, Florida. Hanna raged over Cuba and it looked like her successor, Ike, then still over the middle of the ocean, would strongly intensify. After some bad experiences with luggage I travel light where possible so I often have no baggage to check-in. For Florida I thought I could leave my jumper, coat and boots at home. A handful of T-shirts, underwear and shorts would surely do. And in any case these days with the new security rules you can t travel with big bottles of shampoo and tubes of toothpaste. My fellow researchers in Florida arrived at the airport in Tampa similarly attired so I didn t think any further of it. The next day we went to the American air force base at Tampa where Kermit is stationed. En route we stopped at Starbucks and Paul told me to ride along with Joe to the base because he works there and the fewer people in a vehicle the more straightforward security tends to be. Before Joe arrived at Starbucks Paul noticed I was wearing sandals and this turned out to be a problem. For safety reasons boots or tough shoes need to be worn on board Kermit. Damaging my big toe wasn t my greatest worry about flying through a Ad Stoffelen flew through Hurricanes Hanna and Ike hurricane, but rules are rules. At the researchers have a go at flying the base Joe found some work boots for plane (wow!!). The idea is to fly me. straight, but I think I signed my name in the sky. Not quite a straight September 6: signature line. In short happy that we do A trip from Tampa, Florida to St. actually have pilots with us and that Croix in the Caribbean, now who we, as researchers, don t have to fly wouldn t fancy that? However, it through Ike on our own. won t be just a trip, because en route we re going to meet Hurricane On the northwest side of Ike Ike. On the one hand we re flying conditions are relatively dry and to provide the National Hurricane sunny and so soon we can see the Center in the USA with actual data hurricane looming in the distance; about the intensity and structure of a sort of black stripe on the horizon the storm, and on the other hand, that quickly comes threateningly my bit, we re flying under the track towards us. Both above and below us of the ASCAT scatterometer to get cloud amounts increase, but we still high quality observations to better catch regular glimpses of the sea, calibrate ASCAT. With ASCAT on which looks increasingly rough. Even board the MetOp-A satellite the when we re flying through the band wind over the sea surface can be of maximum winds we see the sea. determined. Yesterday evening It s a spectacular sight, and ASCAT measured the highest wind even for experienced hurricane speeds ever (since October 2006) hunters a relatively unusual measured and now we can verify this experience. when we fly under ASCAT s path this afternoon. In the eastern sector the sea temperature drops from 25oC to In the early stages of the flight 22oC over a wide area. Ike leaves the pilots are happy to let the behind a trail in the sea as his strong MIM January

16 The otherwise idyllic light blue sea is transformed into a sort of asparagus soup. winds mix the warm surface water with colder water below causing a net decrease in sea surface temperature. From the northwest we travel southeast through the eye and then back again. At that moment the ASCAT passes over us. Just above the sea surface we measure winds around 200 km/hour locally, and in general this ties in well with the highest winds ASCAT has measured. Ike will now be a Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir Simpson scale, Category 5 being the most intense hurricane on this scale. I m curious what the latest ASCAT readings, which will be available in 30 minutes, will show. According to the instruments mean sea level pressure s fallen to 950 hpa in the eye. We cross Ike eight times from different directions, each time releasing a dropsonde which will give us a wind profile from 2 km down to the sea surface. From time to time it absolutely chucks it down. In these conditions the aircraft is bounced around from all directions and I m glad I took an anti-seasickness pill. Now I can enjoy the experience. When I can finally release my seatbelt the other crew members, some of whom have 25 years experience, tell me that it was an exciting ride for them too. I m happy that we ve made it through safe and sound. That doesn t apply to the aircraft though there is some damage from the wind and hail to equipment that s fixed to the wing. The plane underwent accelerations from -1.1 to +3.2 times gravity. The boundaries under which flying is allowed lies between -1.5 and +3.5 times gravity. I ll never forget this awesome trip. September 7: eye wall Yesterday the ASCAT scatterometer once again measured the highest wind speeds ever recorded just as we flew through Ike. Ike is a Category 4 and is now intensifying. During the briefing concern was expressed about the state of the plane s tail after tangling with Ike yesterday. It is not possible to make a full inspection of the aircraft tail construction in St, Croix. The plan is to return to Tampa immediately when stress on the plane exceeds +2.5 or falls below -1.1 times the gravitational field. We leave a little earlier because 16 MIM January 2009

17 during the evening Ike will move towards Cuba. We haven t got permission to fly over Cuba, although in all probability they won t come after us when we do fly there. Ike has not become too much stronger than yesterday, but looks more symmetrical on satellite photos. Consequently we should see a nice, round eye. The eye is usually visible in satellite imagery, but it does sometimes disappear. The eye is surrounded by what s called the eye wall, a wall of cloud extended from 1 km or so to more than 10 km high. When the eye is symmetrical it is completely surrounded by this eyewall. There is also little cloud and calm conditions in a well-developed eye. When the MetOp-A satellite passes this evening the eye is around 100 km outside the strip of sea surface measured by ASCAT. Because the zone with the most intense winds near the eye is less than 100 km wide today s data set is unfortunately less useful for our purposes. We measure a central pressure of 943 hpa in the eye. I don t get this at home! On the sea surface we measure 200 km/ hour winds, very much a Catergory 4 hurricane. We fly through the eye several times until after sunset. It is indeed a well-developed eye and looks both magnificent and quiet with an enormous wall of cloud all around us. A wonderful experience I ll keep with me forever. September 10: asparagus soup Ike has clearly weakened over Cuba. During today s flight we measured maximum winds of 65 knots (33 m/s or 119 km/hour). It seems like I m getting used to tropical cyclones, because today s flight doesn t feel like anything special. We crossed Ike s eye eight times, the final time as the ASCAT scatterometer passes, so once again we re able to get some good simultaneous comparative data between ASCAT and the instruments on board our aircraft, Kermit. This time we were allowed to fly over Cuba. Because Ike had just crossed Cuba we were able to see the effects of Ike on Cuba and its coastal waters. In the shallow waters of the Caribbean Ike has left a trail of destruction behind. The otherwise idyllic light blue sea is transformed into a sort of asparagus soup. Strong winds and low pressure in the eye of Ike MIM January

18 The eye is surrounded by what s called the eye wall Sediment from the bottom (coral) is clearly stirred and mixed with the salt water. During the majority of the flight round Ike we measured winds around 25 m/s (90 km/hour), which shows us that although the centre has been broken up a little by Cuba s topography, there is still a lot of energy in and around the hurricane. The forecast increase in Ike to a Category 3 looks likely. September 11: spiral After a short night and taking care of the necessary media contacts in Holland and other s we re on the move again at 12:00 for my fourth and last trip through Ike. The hurricane is gathering itself together again after crossing Cuba. A developing Ike over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico promises some turbulence. First we collect some lunch and dinner, then we go to the hangar for the planning breifing. Today there is no ASCAT satellite pass across Ike, but there is a QuikScat pass around 20:00 local time, so we ll use the advanced scatterometer on board Kermit to look at this data. Conditions during the first part of the flight are showery as Ike spreads his influence. Winds quickly pick up and exceed 20 m/s. The enormous cloud towers provide an impressive spectacle. As we fly towards the eye the wind picks up; 30 km from the eye we record 40 m/s at our flight level; (2400 m), and 37 m/s at 10 m. Then the wind suddenly decreases to 20 m/s, the rain stops, the cloud breaks and the sea surface is clearly visible again. As I look outside it dawns on me that we re in the spiral around the eye. We ve just flown through a convective band with bad weather and before we get to the eye we need to fly through a second band. This pattern repeats itself regardless of the direction we fly in. In the innermost band the wind rapidly shoots up to the old values, and it rains cats and dogs again. Every 45 minutes we cross Ike and each time we note a lower and lower central pressure; 949 hpa, 945 hpa, 942 hpa, 941 hpa, 939 hpa what will it get down to over the next few days? The wind increases through our flight too, but that could be associated with the various embedded convective cells and bands we pass though. The pressure pattern shows more symmetry than the wind pattern through our transects. We record a maximum wind of 18 MIM January 2009

19 Jo Spruce, 14 September: coldfront, day after Ike reached Texas 40 m/s at sea level and 48 m/s at flight level. That exceeds the forecasts from the National Hurricane Center who ll amend their forecasts based on our data. Incredible Of the four flights I made through Ike, the first two were the most demanding. Ike was then a Category 4 hurricane, Category 5 being the most intense class of hurricane. At one point it felt as though the aircraft had been picked up and then thrown back down again downwind. Shocked I looked around, but the crew looked calm, so I figured this sort of thing was quite normal. It was an incredible week. Translation English text: Dan Suri Jo Spruce: Ike carbage MIM January

20 M.H. Jansen Certificates During the past period were 39 M.H. Jansen Certificates awarded for 50 OBS, 15 for 250 and 4 for 500 OBS. Together with the 250 and 500 certificates a set of pens and a coat of arms were awarded respectively as well. The PMO-Office would like to congratulate the officers and apprentices who have received a certificate from us this time. Anthony Veder Rederijzaken 50 OBS: Augustian A. Heriyanto A. Novianto T.D. Prastyo E Satria I. 250 OBS: Bulte D. Dean J. Phalevi M.R 500 OBS: Gunawan A. Broere Shipping Services B.V. 50 OBS: Koster de J. Dockwise Shipping B.V. 50 OBS: Degtjarjovs I. Djomins I. Jurshins M. Kireicikovs V. Timofejevs R. Kahn Scheepvaart B.V. 50 OBS: Brinke ten B.H. Graaf de S. Jong de J.E. Reijngoud R. Reijnhout V. Stenneberg M.A. 250 OBS: Hagenaars F. Rehorst M.W. Wisse A.P. Maersk Ship Management 50 OBS: Visser L. Seatrade Groningen B.V. 50 OBS: Domingo F.R. Kutalev R. Samoshkina L. Severgin V. 250 OBS: Fil chenkov V. Reglos K.S. Sistosa A.I. Tkachenko O. Trusov A. 500 OBS: Moiseyev L. Svitzer Ocean Towage B.V. 50 OBS: Bogomolov O. 250 OBS: Zhyltsov O.V. Spliethoff Beheer B.V. 50 OBS: Bruinsma P.E. Cañete D. Ferwerda T. Goryachenkov A. Kahara T. Malalis C.B.J.R. Mark van der J.L. Tabada M.E. Tugonon A.C. Uzlyakov A.V. Veldhuizen G. 250 OBS: Verbuys J. Koninklijk Nederlands Meteorologisch Instituut 500 OBS: Adjei J.L. Striekwold G.C.M. Koninklijk Nederlands Meteorologisch Instituut Koninklijk Nederlands Meteorologisch Instituut Instituut Instituut Meteorologisch Meteorologisch Nederlands Nederlands Koninklijk Koninklijk Vroon Ship Management B.V. 50 OBS: Castillo J.R. 250 OBS: Avila R.T. Ong Sotto J. Wagenborg Scheepvaart B.V. 50 OBS: Hasper P. Janssen van Doorn S.G. Tampos E.A. Tiemessen M.W.H. 20 MIM January 2009 Koninklijk N

21 RESULTS, The list always refers to the past 12 months Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Juli Aug Sep Oct Nov Sum AALSMEERGRACHT PCAM ACHTERGRACHT PCCL ADMIRALENGRACHT PCDE ADRIATIC PJHB AFRICABORG PHMH ALBLASGRACHT PCIG ALEXANDERGRACHT PCKU AMERICABORG PHKT AMSTELGRACHT PCPR ANJELIERSGRACHT PCGQ ANKERGRACHT PCQL ANTILLA PJJI APOLLOGRACHT PCSV ARCHANGELGRACHT PCTG ARNEBORG PHHD ARTISGRACHT PCUI ARUBA PJJH ASIABORG PHIW ASIATIC C6KE ATLANTICBORG PHNG ATLASGRACHT PCVX AVATAQ PFPT BASTIAAN BROERE PCZM BENGUELA STREAM PENR BERGE PACIFIC LAIK BERGE STAHL LATO BUZZARD BAY A8JH COLD STREAM PJRH COMOROS STREAM A8IP COOL EXPRESS PDKK CORAL CARBONIC TBWA CORAL FAVIA TBWA CORAL ISIS TBWA CORAL MEANDRA TBWA CORAL MILLEPORA TBWA CORAL OBELIA TBWA CORAL PALMATA TBWA CORAL PAVONA ELXG CORAL RIGIDA TBWA CORAL RUBRUM TBWA DANIELLA PDNN DOCK EXPRESS 10 PBBT DUTCH AQUAMARINE PCHS DUTCH EMERALD PCIP DUTCH ENGINEER PDTS DUTCH FAITH PDTM DUTCH MARINER PDTT DUTCH MATE PDTQ DUTCH NAVIGATOR PDTP DUTCH PILOT PDTU DUTCH PROGRESS PDTV DUTCH SPIRIT PDTO EAGLE BAY A8JH EDAMGRACHT PDWZ EDISONGRACHT PDUJ EDITH MAERSK OXOR2 8 8 EEMSGRACHT PDXQ EENDRACHT PDVN EGELANTIERSGRACHT PDWT EGMONDGRACHT PDWG ELANDSGRACHT PDYI ELLY MAERSK OXHY ELSEBETH A8IO ELVIRA A8IP EMERALD A8IP EMMAGRACHT PDYX MIM January

22 Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Juli Aug Sep Oct Nov Sum EMMA MAERSK OYGR2 0 0 ERASMUSGRACHT PDYV ESMERALDA A8IN EUROGRACHT PDZR EUROPA PDZS EVA N A8QJ EVELYN MAERSK OXHV FAIRLANE PBFW FAIRLIFT PEBM FAIRLOAD PEBP FAIRMAST PHEB FALCON BAY A8JI FLINTERDUIN PEBT HAPPY BUCCANEER PEND HAPPY RANGER PCER HAPPY RIVER PCAW HAPPY ROVER PCBZ HAWK BAY A8JH HEDWIG OLDENDORFF A8FZS HOLLAND KLIPPER PESF IVER EXACT PHJV IVER EXCEL PCBU IVER EXPERIENCE PECF IVER EXPERT PCEX IVER EXPORTER PFBF JACOBUS BROERE PEYU JO CEDAR PFDI JO SELJE PFEI JO SPRUCE PFAS JO SYCAMORE LAOO JO SYPRESS PFSK JOHANNES MAERSK OWFDZ JOINT FROST PJOJ JUMBO CHALLENGER PHED JUMBO JAVELIN PHEG JUMBO SPIRIT PFFH KARLA-OMAYRA PJUO KLIPPER STREAM PHBO 0 0 LICA MAERSK OWAY LOMBOK STRAIT A8IO LONDON PCBI LUZON STRAIT A81O MAERSK IMOSHIMA PHPP MAERSK INVERNESS PBDH MAERSL IZMIR PHOB MAERSK KALMAR PDHP MAERSK KAMPALA PFDH MAERSK KIMI PDHO MAERSK KLAIPEDA PBAS MAERSK PALERMO PHDW MAERSK PEMBROKE PDHY MAERSK PENANG TBWA MAERSK SALALAH PHPG MAERSK SAVANNAH PHPS 7 7 MAERSK STEPNICA PHNH MAERSK STOCKHOLM PHPQ MAGDALENA PBCK MAKIRI GREEN C6VX MARINUS GREEN PECS MARISSA GREEN PBAG MARLENE GREEN PBCJ MERINO EXPRESS DYKY MIGHTY SERVANT 1 PJVZ NASSAUBORG PHDU NICKERIE PJJL NLL BARENTSZ PHKL NLL MERCATOR PCIM NOVA CALEDONIA 9HIH NOVA FRIESIA A8OA NOVA TERRA C6IZ NOVA ZEELANDIA PJHA ORANJEBORG PIAG PACIFIC PGQI MIM January 2009

23 Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Juli Aug Sep Oct Nov Sum PELAGIA PGRQ POLAR STREAM A8IO PRINCE OF SEAS A8JI PRINSENBORG PBJF PRINS J. WILLEM FRISO TBWA RHONEBORG PEDS RHUR NEU A8KU ROTTERDAM PDGS ROTTERDAM (smitwijs) PHPO ROYAL KLIPPER PCIH SAMAAIGRACHT PHCQ SAMPOGRACHT PHDL SANTA LUCIA A8IP SANTA MARIA A8IN SCHELDEGRACHT PFAQ SCHIPPERSGRACHT PCGR SINGAPORE PHHB SINGELGRACHT PCGM SLOTERGRACHT PDBP SLUISGRACHT PFBE SNOEKGRACHT PCHF SPAARNEGRACHT PDBO SPIEGELGRACHT PCEO SPRING BOB TBW SPRING BOK PBFM SPRING DELI PJFF SPRING PANDA PHQX SPRING TIGER PCBV SPUIGRACHT PBBB STAD AMSTERDAM PECA STADIONGRACHT PDBY STATENGRACHT PHAQ STELLA NOVA PHQW STELLA PRIMA PHEA STELLA WEGA PHHQ SUOMIGRACHT PHBT SUPER SERVANT 3 PJPN SUPER SERVANT 4 PJPO TIMCA PHFL TRACER PHAC TRAMPER PHAA TRANSPORTER PHAL TRAVELLER PHAM UAL ABERDEEN PBHZ UAL AFRICA PBGY UAL TEXAS PBEN UMIA VUT PFQE SUM ROYAL NAVY - From the participating navy vessels 178 observations were received by GTS. THE FLEET During the fourth quarter of 2008 eightteen ships stopped making observations: the Maersk Miami, the Maersk Radford, the Nedlloyd Africa, the Nedlloyd America, the Nedlloyd Asia, the Nedlloyd Europa, the Nedlloyd Honshu, the Nedlloyd Oceania, the Dockexpress 12, the Fairpartner, the Isis, the Green Iceland, the Green Maveric, the Green Music, the Green Magic, the Green Majestic, the Green Magnific and the Green Klipper. We would like to welcome twelve new ships: the Maersk Izmir, the Maersk Salalah, the Maersk Stockholm, the Maersk Imoshima, the Maersk Savannah, the Elly Maersk, the Evelyn Maersk, the Edith Maersk, the Emma Maersk, the Klipper Stream, the Ruhr Neu and the Berge Pacific. The Dutch VOS-fleet is made up of 185 Selected Ships and 31 Royal Navy ships. From 1 March 2008 observations from offshore installations in the North Sea have been automated. MIM January

24 10 TOP RANKING 2008 The Top 10 list looks at the calander year. There will always be a difference in number of OBS s with the list of results. January Sum 1 PELAGIA EDAMGRACHT BENGUELA STREAM MARISSA GREEN SPRING BOB DOCK EXPRESS MERINO EXPRESS MIGHTY SERVANT EUROPA ROTTERDAM Febuary Sum 1 CORAL RIGIDA PELAGIA BENGUELA STREAM EDAMGRACHT MIGHTY SERVANT ROTTERDAM (smitwijs) DOCK EXPRESS SPRING BOB ADMIRALENGRACHT BUZZARD BAY March Sum April Sum 1 CORAL RIGIDA BENGUELA STREAM EDAMGRACHT PELAGIA BERGE NORD MIGHTY SERVANT STADIONGRACHT BUZZARD BAY ADMIRALENGRACHT DOCK EXPRESS CORAL RIGIDA BENGUELA STREAM EDAMGRACHT BUZZARD BAY ROTTERDAM (smitwijs) BERGE NORD CORAL FAVIA STADIONGRACHT PELAGIA EUROPA MIM January 2009

25 May Sum 1 CORAL RIGIDA BENGUELA STREAM ROTTERDAM (smitwijs) ROTTERDAM EDAMGRACHT BUZZARD BAY BERGE NORD CORAL FAVIA ACHTERGRACHT LICA MAERSK June Sum 1 CORAL RIGIDA BENGUELA STREAM ROTTERDAM EDAMGRACHT BUZZARD BAY ROTTERDAM (smitwijs) BERGE NORD ROYAL KLIPPER CORAL FAVIA HAPPY ROVER July Sum 1 CORAL RIGIDA BENGUELA STREAM ROTTERDAM ROYAL KLIPPER ROTTERDAM (smitwijs) EDAMGRACHT BUZZARD BAY HAPPY RIVER HAPPY ROVER BERGE NORD August Sum 1 BENGUELA STREAM CORAL RIGIDA HAPPY RIVER ROYAL KLIPPER ROTTERDAM ROTTERDAM (smitwijs) EDAMGRACHT MIGHTY SERVANT PELAGIA BUZZARD BAY September Sum 1 BENGUELA STREAM CORAL RIGIDA ROTTERDAM HAPPY RIVER ROYAL KLIPPER PELAGIA EDAMGRACHT ROTTERDAM (smitwijs) HAPPY ROVER MIGHTY SERVANT October Sum 1 BENGUELA STREAM ROTTERDAM HAPPY RIVER PELAGIA ROYAL KLIPPER CORAL RIGIDA EDAMGRACHT ROTTERDAM (smitwijs) CORAL OBELIA HAPPY ROVER November Sum December Sum 1 BENGUELA STREAM ROTTERDAM PELAGIA HAPPY RIVER ROYAL KLIPPER CORAL RIGIDA EDAMGRACHT ROTTERDAM (smitwijs) CORAL OBELIA HAPPY ROVER ? MIM January

26 Solitons Self-reinforcing solitary waves Position: 19-02N W, passing 110 nm WNW of Nouakchott, Mauritania. 26 MIM January 2009

27 I Scientists call waves which are not fading out solitons. You can compare them with the human wave in a soccer stadium. On water they can stay in shape, strange shapes sometimes, for hours while regular waves quickly fade out. Waves rolling onto the coast from deep water can, before they break, look like solitons. These waves were observed for the first time by the scientist Scott Russell. The Anjeliersgracht crew observed this phenomenon on 4 September 2008 at 17:00 UTC. On the radar screen long stretched echos were observed, as can be seen on the picture. In front of the ship, this phenomena was also visible, as can be seen on the other picture, a crewmember wrote. The observation was made by Chief Officer R. Vermeer and Master J.A.M. van Zadel. Source: Stony Brook University, New York MIM January

28 Hurricane Ike over Cuba, Jamaica, and the Bahamas, 8 September Photo by Aqua satellite. Image courtesy of MODIS Rapid Response Project at NASA/GSFC. ATTENTIE * ATTENTION! LES EIK (Noorwegen) en ARVI (India) We vragen jullie vriendelijk doch nadrukkelijk om weerwaarnemingen NIET via EIK (AORE: 104) te versturen en ARVI (IOR: 306) alleen binnen METAREA 8 (NOORD) te gebruiken. Zo wordt voorkomen dat de rederijen voor de verzendkosten opdraaien. LES EIK (Norway) and ARVI (India) We kindly but expressly ask you NOT to send any weather observations through EIK (AORE: 104) and to use ARVI (IOR: 306) only within METAREA 8 (NORTH). This will help shipping companies avoid being invoiced for these transmission costs. 28 MIM January 2009