CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS AT ARECIBO FOR RESEARCH IN THE ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCES AT LOW LATITUDES

We discuss several recent enhancements to the instrumentation that hav e taken place at the Arecibo Observatory. These improvements and equip ment augmentations strengthen Arecibo's unique position as a facility capable of observing the total atmosphere and ionosphere in the tropic s. The changes made, or those planned, affected both the radar and the optical systems. We begin with a description of the current status of the Gregorian Upgrade Project and describe the recent additions of su pplementary instrumentation. We also note several examples of the late st experimental investigations of the atmosphere, conducted by visitin g scientists and local staff, which range from very high altitudes to near the ground. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.