Ozonesonde

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A unique instrument employed for analyzing the ozone concentration in the atmosphere at various altitudes
2. A device specifically developed to monitor and evaluate atmospheric ozone levels by means of high-altitude balloon flights
3. A specialized apparatus designed to measure the concentration of ozone in the atmosphere across different elevations

Etymology: "Ozonesonde" is a compound built from two parts, "ozone" and "sonde". Ozone itself is a word coined in the 1840s by the German-Swiss chemist Christian Friedrich Schönbein, who named the gas from the Greek "ozein", meaning "to smell", because of its sharp odour. "Sonde" is a German borrowing meaning a probe or sounding line, used for instruments lowered or sent into an environment to measure it. Put together, the compound names a small instrument carried aloft by a weather balloon that measures the concentration of ozone in the atmosphere as it climbs. The "sonde" element carries the idea of a device sent up to take readings, while "ozone" names the gas being measured.