1. Destination of meteorological measurements

Meteorological measurements are intended to quantify the various physical quantities that characterize the state of the atmosphere. This state is influenced by phenomena of very diverse spatial and temporal scales that interact and sometimes need to be separated.

• The synoptic scale describes phenomena affecting the general circulation of air masses over areas covering several hundred kilometers and periods of time lasting several hours or even several days.

  Synoptic measurements correspond to national and international networks. The values obtained have been exchanged between all countries according to procedures standardized by the WMO for decades.

• The microscale refers to spatial dimensions of a few hundred meters and periods of a few minutes. Turbulence phenomena are...