Kona, Hawaii USA
The stop in Kona, Hawaii is an important one because as the GV makes its way south, it needs to stop multiple times to refuel and get supplies. Kona, Hawaii and other islands in the Pacific allow for island hopping their way down to New Zealand. Besides, the crew needs a little time to warm up after spending time in Alaska and deep northern latitudes!
Another reason that sampling near Hawaii is important is that there is a NOAA research station based on Mauna Loa, Hawaii (Earth's largest volcano) where atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) is measured. The important difference is that the measurements taken on top if Mauna Loa are from a single fixed point, whereas the the measurements and sampling taken during the HIPPO project come from a vertical profile of the atmosphere, so many samples from 1000' to 45,000', near Hawaii, will be taken and can be compared to the CO2 measurements taken from Mauna Loa.
Kona, HI Weather
