Airborne Instruments & Campaigns

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Ryan Nalty
ryan.nalty@colorado.edu
303-492-4916

LASP built a leveling platform for an airborne radiometer as part of NASA’s AITT to increase the accuracy of airborne irradiance measurements; it was tested during NASA PODEX (Polarimeter Definition Experiment).

Principal Investigator:

  • ; LASP, Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences

Jeffrey Deems at the National Snow and Ice Data Center is very involved in both NASA missions, designed to improve measurement and understanding of snow dynamics, especially in areas where snow is critical to the region’s water resources. The team is also using the remote-sensing missions to pioneer new instruments that may eventually be used on a snow-sensing satellite.

Co-investigator:

  • ; National Snow & Ice Data Center, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES)

September 2014 mission to reconcile the Arctic surface radiation budget as derived from space-, aircraft-, and ground-based measurements. The ARISE campaign included 16 C-130 aircraft flights between Sept. 21 and Oct. 2, 2014. Data from ARISE will help scientists understand the relationship between ocean and ice surfaces and clouds and the role that relationship plays in the overall climate system. LASP and ATOC scientists and engineers will contribute measurements of solar spectral irradiance.

Principal Investigator:

  • ; LASP, Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences

The NASA GlobalHawk Unmanned Airborne Vehicle was used during ATTREX to measure the heating rate and water vapor absorption in the upper troposphere/lower stratosphere. CIRES FellowDavid Fahey was one of five lead project scientists on this mission (the rest are NASA) and Fahey’s team included four CIRES scientists.

Principal Investigator:

  • ; Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences

Co-investigators:

  • ; LASP, Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences
  • ; LASP, Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences

CIRES Scientists:

Based out of Langley, DISCOVER-AQ was an aircraft campaign focused on understanding the chemistry and physics behind air quality challenges in three broad regions in Texas, Californiaand the Washington, DC area.

During the Colorado mission (Summer 2014), many CU Boulder and CIRES researchers were involved, including and several students: Jeff Peischl, Owen Cooper, Jon Koeflerand Gabrielle Petron.

Ongoing series of airborne campaigns to measure changes in the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, topography of the underlying bedrock, as well as changes in Arctic sea ice thickness.

Co-investigators:

  • ; National Snow & Ice Data Center
  • ; National Snow & Ice Data Center

CU Boulder’s Brian Toon was the science lead on this major effort to improve our understanding of pollutant emissions, how they are transported in the atmosphere and affect clouds, air quality and climate change. LASP’s Sebastian Schmidt and CIRES’ Jose-Luis Jimenez and Josh Schwarz served as instrument leads on the mission, which involved two research aircraft, ground stations, satellite measurements and dozens of researchers around the country.

Principal Investigator:

  • ; LASP, Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences

Instrument Leads:

  • ; CIRES, Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences
  • ; CIRES

LASP provided new instruments for theNational Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) Airborne Observation Program (AOP) to aid in so-called“atmospheric correction”. They measure hyperspectral reflectance from aircraft todetermine surface reflectanceproperties. That requires correcting the measured signal for attenuation from the atmosphere. This was a two-year proof-of-conceptprogram.Will host an improved solar spectral radiometer system designed to minimize weight, uncertaintyand cost. (This work was completed in June 2013.)

Principal Investigator:

  • ; Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences

Co-investigators:

  • ; LASP, Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences
  • ; LASP, Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences