Development of Meteorological Instrumentation at USASRDL

This article describes the development of electronic meteorological instrumentation at USASRDL from the early days of 1930, when practically no electronic equipment was employed for meteorological purposes, down to the present time. The discussion covers the development of radiosondes at high, VHF, and microwave frequencies, radio wind-finding equipment both manual and automatic, dropsondes to measure the temperature and humidity when dropped from an airplane and carried to earth on a parachute, weather radar equipment, sferics equipment for locating thunderstorms, rocketsondes, and other meteorological equipment. The history of various developments is presented as well as technical considerations which led to the engineering solutions to the various problems as they arose. The entire development program is related to progress in the field of meteorology and the usages of weather information which produced the urgency for developing the new types of electronic equipment.