Prediction and understanding of tropical
cyclogenesis remains one of the most challenging aspects of atmospheric
science. A multitude of tropical disturbances emerge from the West
African coast every year near the Cape Verde islands, but only a few of
these develop into tropical depressions, storms, or hurricanes. To
further our understanding of these potentially high impact events,
the PRE-Depression Investigation of Cloud-systems in the Tropics (PREDICT)
field experiment will deploy the NSF/NCAR Gulfstream-V aircraft in the Atlantic
basin in the heart of hurricane season to explore multi-scale
interactions in tropical wave-like disturbances that promote or hinder
the development of a tropical depression vortex.