Operations Updates
ARM Climate Research Facility Operations Update - April 30, 2008
This bimonthly report provides a brief summary of significant accomplishments and activities in the operations area of the ARM Climate Research Facility (ACRF).
Arctic Aerosol Study Flies By
This image of the NRC-Convair probes above cloud and haze layers was taken on April 8, 2008, the campaign's first "golden day." Image courtesy of Alexei Korolev, Environment Canada.
Ending its mission with a final flight on April 30, 2008, the Indirect and Semi-Direct Aerosol Campaign (ISDAC) flew a total of 103 research hours, completing 27 science flights primarily in the region around the ACRF North Slope of Alaska site in Barrow. These flights included several golden cases where both cloud and aerosol measurements were obtained above, within, and below mixed-phase cloud layers. In addition, the campaign successfully demonstrated first-time airborne deployments of key instruments for measuring aerosol properties. All of the campaign's primary objectives were met, plus some secondary objectives, to help answer the team's science questions related to Arctic cloud and aerosol interactions.
Preliminary screening and analysis of images from the time-resolved aerosol collector indicate particles laden with carbon and sulfur. These data were obtained on April 8, 2008. Image courtesy of Alexander Laskin, PNNL.
Images from the cloud particle imager instrument on April 2, 2008, show ice crystals in various shapes and sizes. Image courtesy of SPEC, Inc. Click for a larger version.
All of the 42 instruments on board the NRC-Convair-580 operated nominally throughout the campaign, including two that had never flown in an official airborne research mission before. The Single Particle Laser Ablation Time-of-flight mass spectrometer (SPLAT) was developed at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and converted for airborne deployment through funding by DOE's Atmospheric Science Program (ASP). The SPLAT obtains size-resolved aerosol composition data, while the Continuous Flow Diffusion Counter (CFDC) from Texas A&M University provides measurements of aerosols and ice nuclei concentration. Both instruments worked very well, and combined with measurements from the other aerosol instruments used during ISDAC, will improve scientific understanding of the relationship between properties of aerosol particles and their activity as cloud condensation and ice nuclei, which play a major role in the amount of precipitation and heat that reach the Earth's surface. The ASP supported the campaign with instruments to measure aerosol composition and optical properties.
The ISDAC campaign generated a wealth of new data using state-of-the-art instruments. This data set will allow scientists to link cloud microphysics, aerosol chemistry and optical properties, particularly for ice and mixed-phase clouds, which are key regulators of Arctic climate. This information will help to develop better models and potentially lead to more accurate predictions of climate change and its impacts. Some preliminary findings will be presented as early as this coming June at the GEWEX Cloud System Study meeting in Toulouse, France.
Team Scouts Graciosa Island for 2009 Mobile Facility Deployment Site
A location near the airport on the northern end of Graciosa Island was identified as an excellent location for operating the ARM Mobile Facility. Image source: Luis Miguens
Indications from a scouting trip by the ARM Mobile Facility (AMF) science and operations management team are that an excellent site for the 2009 deployment may have been found. From April 8 through April 16, the team traveled to Graciosa Island in the Azores to scout sites for the Clouds, Aerosol, and Precipitation in the Marine Boundary Layer (CLAP-MBL) field campaign.
On the upwind side of the island they located a site near the airport about 500 meters from the coastline. In addition to a buoy located just offshore that measures sea surface temperature, the team noted that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is operating flux instrumentation at Mt. Pico, which is visible from Graciosa. Supplementary observations made above the boundary layer from Mt. Pico would greatly benefit the data set collected at the airport. Finally, the team had productive meetings with in-country hosts from the University of the Azores and the Portugal Meteorological Institute. These contacts will be extremely valuable as deployment planning continues in the coming year.
ACRF Outreach Materials Chosen for Earth Day Display in Washington DC
Posters for the ARM Mobile Facility and ARM Education and Outreach were selected for the 2008 Earth Day display at DOE Headquarters.
Earth Day is officially honored each year on April 22, however, many groups sponsor activities throughout the entire month of April. At DOE Headquarters in Washington DC, two ACRF posters were selected to join a poster display representing programs from numerous DOE offices. The display was featured in the Forrestal Building's ground-level and first floor lobby areas throughout the week of April 21. The posters were then displayed at DOE Headquarters' Germantown facility during the week of April 28.
ACRF posters on display included an overview poster about the ARM Mobile Facility and an educational poster geared toward kids in grades K-12. The ARM Mobile Facility poster features the system capabilities and baseline instruments and also lists the past several deployment locations. The educational poster features the ACRF site "mascots"—a polar bear for the North Slope of Alaska, a sea turtle for the Tropical Western Pacific, and a prairie dog for the Southern Great Plains. It also includes information about the educational tools and materials available through the ARM Education website.
Earth Day began in 1970, when former Senator Gaylord Nelson first set aside the day to recognize and honor the environment in which we live. Since its inception, Earth Day has attracted increasing support, expanding across the globe as millions of people celebrate with events both large and small in nearly 200 different countries.
