Field Validation of Cloud Properties Sensor – SAIL Field Campaign Report

Technical Report · Fri Dec 01 04:00:00 EST 2023

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/2280540· OSTI ID:2280540

Jones, Stephen H. ^[1]

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1. Aerodyne Research, Inc., Billerica, MA (United States)

The purpose of the Field Validation of Cloud Properties Sensor – SAIL campaign was to deploy Aerodyne’s extended-wavelength TWST cloud optical properties sensor (TWST-CPS) in an operationally relevant environment with co-located, externally validated sensors. Colocation with The U.S. Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility’s deployment of its second Mobile Facility (AMF2) on the Surface Atmosphere Integrated Field Laboratory (SAIL) campaign at Crested Butte, Colorado was ideal because of the variety of operational sensors that can measure some of the same cloud properties using different modalities. While cloud property sensors have long existed, they tend to be costly to produce and maintain. Our sensor measures absolute spectral radiance over 440-1700 nm and retrieves cloud optical depth (COD), droplet effective radius (Reff), and thermodynamic phase (Phase). Our prototype is built predominantly from off-the-shelf components and uses uncooled spectrometers. A low-cost, easy-to-use sensor such as this could allow deployment at many more sites for greater spatial coverage. Instrument deployment to test robust operations and a new stray-light baffle design, and the continued development of analysis and retrieval algorithms using the data from this deployment, are central technical objectives of Aerodyne Research’s U.S. Department of Energy Small Business Innovative Research Phase 2 contract (DE-SC0020473, Low-cost shortwave spectroradiometer for retrieval of cloud properties).

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Data Center
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
• Contributing Organization: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL); Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL); Argonne National Laboratory (ANL); Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)
• DOE Contract Number: AC06-76RL01830
• OSTI ID: 2280540
• Report Number(s): DOE/SC-ARM--23-048
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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