Understanding how terrain shapes
the atmosphere.

Terrain–Atmosphere Research Laboratory (TARL) is a research and technology organization centered on understanding how complex terrain influences the atmosphere. Our work focuses on the physical interactions that develop as atmospheric flow encounters mountains, valleys, ridges, slopes, and other terrain features, and on how those interactions influence wind, moisture, stability, boundary-layer structure, convection, and other atmospheric processes.

TARL approaches these problems through an integrated combination of atmospheric research, field observation, instrumentation development, numerical modeling, and forecasting. Rather than treating these areas as separate disciplines, they are used together: observations reveal atmospheric behavior, research identifies the physical mechanisms responsible for it, instrumentation expands what can be measured, modeling tests and generalizes those relationships, and forecasting applies that understanding to prediction.

The long-term purpose of TARL is to advance both the science and measurement of terrain-influenced atmospheric processes while developing new approaches for observing and predicting environments where topography plays a meaningful role.