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Title: SAM-CAAM: A Concept for Acquiring Systematic Aircraft Measurements to Characterize Aerosol Air Masses

Journal Article · · Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [2];  [2];  [4];  [1];  [5];  [6];  [7];  [3];  [8];  [9];  [10];  [11];  [12]
  1. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Greenbelt, MD (United States). Earth Science Division
  2. NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA (United States)
  3. NOAA/Earth System Research Lab., Boulder, CO (United States). Chemical Sciences Division
  4. Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
  5. Univ. of Washington, Seattle, WA (United States). Dept. of Atmospheric Sciences
  6. Univ. of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC), Baltimore, MD (United States). Dept. of Physics. Joint Center for Earth Systems Technology
  7. Golder Associates Ltd., Saskatoon, SK (Canada); Univ. of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI (United States). Dept. of Oceanography
  8. Univ. of Colorado, Boulder, CO (United States). Cooperative Inst. for Research in Environmental Sciences
  9. Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States). Dept. of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering
  10. Univ. of Colorado, Boulder, CO (United States). Dept. of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences
  11. California Inst. of Technology (CalTech), Pasadena, CA (United States)
  12. Aerodyne Research, Inc., Billerica, MA (United States)
+ Show Author Affiliations

A modest operational program of systematic aircraft measurements can resolve key satellite aerosol data record limitations. Satellite observations provide frequent global aerosol amount maps but offer only loose aerosol property constraints needed for climate and air quality applications. In this paper, we define and illustrate the feasibility of flying an aircraft payload to measure key aerosol optical, microphysical, and chemical properties in situ. The flight program could characterize major aerosol airmass types statistically, at a level of detail unobtainable from space. It would 1) enhance satellite aerosol retrieval products with better climatology assumptions and 2) improve translation between satellite-retrieved optical properties and species-specific aerosol mass and size simulated in climate models to assess aerosol forcing, its anthropogenic components, and other environmental impacts. As such, Systematic Aircraft Measurements to Characterize Aerosol Air Masses (SAM-CAAM) could add value to data records representing several decades of aerosol observations from space; improve aerosol constraints on climate modeling; help interrelate remote sensing, in situ, and modeling aerosol-type definitions; and contribute to future satellite aerosol missions. Fifteen required variables are identified and four payload options of increasing ambition are defined to constrain these quantities. “Option C” could meet all the SAM-CAAM objectives with about 20 instruments, most of which have flown before, but never routinely several times per week, and never as a group. Aircraft integration and approaches to data handling, payload support, and logistical considerations for a long-term, operational mission are discussed. Finally, SAM-CAAM is feasible because, for most aerosol sources and specified seasons, particle properties tend to be repeatable, even if aerosol loading varies.

Research Organization:
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Greenbelt, MD (United States); NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE; National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC05-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
1430722
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA-119244
Journal Information:
Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, Vol. 98, Issue 10; ISSN 0003-0007
Publisher:
American Meteorological SocietyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 13 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (4)

Updated MISR dark water research aerosol retrieval algorithm – Part 1: Coupled 1.1 km ocean surface chlorophyll  a retrievals with empirical calibration corrections journal January 2017
Modeling Atmosphere-Ocean Radiative Transfer: A PACE Mission Perspective journal June 2019
Vertical distributions of aerosol optical properties during the spring 2016 ARIAs airborne campaign in the North China Plain journal January 2018
The impact of MISR-derived injection height initialization on wildfire and volcanic plume dispersion in the HYSPLIT model journal January 2018

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