Project #2002-111 IDEAS Phase 1

Instrument Development and Education in Airborne Science

J. Stith, et al.

NSF/NCAR C-130Q Hercules (N130AR)

Participants

Investigator(s) Affiliation Instrument Study
Jeff Stith NCAR/RAF (Principal Investigator) Development of flight plans and schedules, programe management and interaction with community. Oversight of improvements to C-130Q and RAf systems.
Dave Rogers and
Allen Schanot		 NCAR/RAF
  • Wyoming heated inlet
  • Aft-facing inlet
  • Cone-inlet
  • RDMA
  • CN
  • Climet
  • nephelometer(2)
Inlet sample efficiency for aerosol particles. Efficiency depends on inlet geometry, suction rate, and particle size. Compare size distributions, number concentrations, and light scattering using several different instruments inside the airplane. The air sample will sequence between three styles of inlet. Explore occurrence of particles produced as drop splash artifacts.
Dave Rogers NCAR/RAF Cloud Particle Probes Ice formation in wave clouds. Focus on detection of small ice particles (<50µm) and evolution of snow particle size.
Mark Tschudi NCAR/RAF MCR The Multichannel Cloud Radiometer (MCR) is a downward-looking scanning radiometer with seven spectral channels (1 vis, 5 NIR and 1 thermal IR). For IDEAS, it is anticipated that Channels 1 (0.64 µm), 4 (1.06 µm) and 5 (1.64 µm) will be operational. Data in an image format will be displayed in the rear of the cabin as it is being acquired.
Mark Tschudi NCAR/RAF Digital Camera A Minolta DImage 7 color digital camera will be acquiring images through the downward-looking SABL port, located just ahead of the twin seats in the back of the C-130. Images will be snapped manually and will be used to acquire detail in areas of interest during remote sensing flight patterns flown for the AIMR and MCR.
Greg Kok and
Dave Rogers		 DMT
NCAR/RAF		 DMT Total Water Content Probe Evaluate new DMT instrument for RAF purchase
Linnea Avallone and
Darrin Toohey		 LASP
U CO		 CO2 Flight testing of control systems and intercomparison with other instruments
Jørgen Jensen and
Dave Rogers		 CSIRO
NCAR/RAF		 PMS 260X Probe Droplet spash on leading edges
Djamal Khelif and
Carl Friehe		 U CA Irvine
  • Integrated INS-GPS System
  • Fast-Response Total Temperature Probe
  • Compare measurements (aircraft attitude angles, velocity components and position) made by the C-MIGITS II Integrated INS-GPS System with the Honeywell IRS with the hope of validating the C-MIGITS II data. Its small size and price make it very attractive to fly as part of an instrument package on a wing pod and/or to serve as a redundant system to the Honeywell IRS.
  • The UCI-modified Rosemount total temperature (TT) probe has been outfitted with new thermistors last year. The new sensors have better tolerances and need to be tested in the field against a proven TT probe such as the Rosemount 102E2AL.
Cynthia Twohy OR St U Counterflow Virtual Impactor (CVI) Cloud physics and test of new data system for the CVI
Andy Heymsfield NCAR/MMM Video Ice Particle Sampler (VIPS) Maiden flight; proof of concept. Instrument may lead to improved instrumentation on the C-130, especially for the detection of small ice crystals.
Jim Dye NCAR/MMM Cloud Particle Imager Training of RAF staff on instrument operation.
Bob Kelly U WY Licor 6262 water vapor/CO2 IRGA Intercomparison with other instruments to more completely describe the instrument's capabilities and limitations for future users.
Britt Stephens NCAR/RAF
  • Air Sampling
  • MEDUSA
  • ROXAN (O2 analyzer)
  • Teresa Campos and I are collecting flask samples for analysis at NOAA CMDL, using their aircraft sampling system (http://www.cmdl.noaa.gov/ccgg/aircraft/). The primary goal is to provide verification data for the in situ CO2 and CO measurements, but the air is also being analyzed for concentrations of CH4, N2O, SF6, and H2.
  • Evaluation of the Multiple Enclosure Device for Unfractionated Sampling of Air (MEDUSA), a pressure-, flow- and humidity-controlled flask sampling system that was used during the COBRA-North America study in 2000 and will be used in the COBRA-Brazil study this fall and next spring. The flasks are analyzed for CO2 concentrations and O2/N2 and Ar/N2 ratios at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and during the COBRA campaigns for CO2, CO, CH4, N2O, SF6, and H2 at CMDL and for 13C and 18O ratios in CO2 at CU/INSTAAR. Specifically, I am switching between two different inlets (3/8" and 1/8" diameter) to verify that the pressure gradients and compressional temperature gradients at the inlet do not lead to fractionation of O2 relative to N2.
  • Development of the RAF Oxygen Analyzer (ROXAN). I have developed a vacuum ultraviolet absorption oxygen analyzer that can measure variations in oxygen concentration at a relative level of 1 part per million (equal to 1 per meg or 1/1000 of a per mil). This instrument has been successfully deployed on several oceanographic research vessels, and I am hoping to use it to make the first measurements of atmospheric oxygen variations from an aircraft. The instrument is currently in a breadboard state. I plan to characterize its temperature, pressure, and motion sensitivities during the April flights and then repackage it with the necessary environmental controls for the October flights.
Teresa Campos NCAR/ACD O3 Flight test experience.
Amanda Cox and
Julie Haggerty		 NCAR/ASP
NCAR/RAF		 Airborne Imaging Microwave Radiometer (AIMR) Preliminary test to see if the AIMR can be used to characterize vegetation and calculate vegetation index.
Greg Roberts Scripps Continuous-Flow CCN Counter

Test this novel instrument design which exploits different rates of diffusion of heat and water vapor to generate a nearly uniform supersaturation profile along the longitudinal axis. The instrument's concept needs flight testing to assess temperature and pressure effects on the supersaturation profiles and to compare them to model studies.

To verify operation of the new CCN design, a static thermal-gradient CCN instrument (STG CCN) will be used for simultaneous measurements.
Last update: Mon May 5 14:22:42 MDT 2003