National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration vessel Ronald H Brown is in port in St George’s this week in preparation for a research expedition.The ship is scheduled to leave Bermuda on Friday for more than a month at sea, when researchers will look at how air masses coming out of Africa affect weather and climate in the west.The 274ft ship, named after the late US Secretary of Commerce, is the largest vessel in the NOAA fleet, and functions as a state-of-the-art oceanographic and atmospheric research platform.Useful website: www.noaa.gov.