NOAA with support from DHS Science and Technology and a consortium of industrial, academic and other government partners are developing and testing a new system to improve upper air data in areas that are poorly observed. The Weather In Situ Deployment Optimization Method (WISDOM) system is designed around the availability of small (about 1-2 meter) super-pressure balloons, and the availability of small (100 gram) electronics which include over the horizon Global Positioning System and satellite radio capabilities. The concept is that large numbers of WISDOM balloons with the GPS payload could be released to optimize weather prediction at a future time for phenomena of interest. Advanced techniques of assimilation and modeling are used to determine the release locations of the balloons to optimize their trajectories to improve future numerical weather prediction. An initial test of the WISDOM system that was conducted in fall 2008 aimed at late-season tropical cyclone prediction in the Atlantic basin will be discussed.