11/13/2013
Successful Implementation of New ARM Instrumentation
Summary
In July 2012, the 4STAR (Spectrometer for Sky-Scanning, Sun-Tracking Atmospheric Research), a hyperspectral airborne Sun photometer, flew its first science mission. The 4STAR flew on the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) G-1 aircraft during the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement’s (ARM) Two-Column Aerosol Experiment (TCAP) at Cape Cod, Massachusetts. TCAP’s objective was to evaluate model simulations for aging aerosols. The 4STAR measurements of aerosol optical depth (AOD) and its wavelength dependence along air mass transport paths provided valuable data for satisfying the TCAP objective. To evaluate 4STAR’s accuracy, intercomparisons were made with ground-based instruments as well as other instruments on the G-1 and the High Spectral Resolution Lidar that flew on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) B200 aircraft. The favorable intercomparisons herald 4STAR’s spatially resolved high-frequency hyperspectral products as a reliable tool for climate studies and satellite validation. The 4STAR development was an interagency effort with the hardware and science algorithm development funded by NASA’s Radiation Science Program, Ames Instrument Working Group, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Global Programs. Further 4STAR maturation, as well as 4STAR’s participation in TCAP, was funded by DOE ARM. Analysis and interpretation of data collected on board the G-1 were supported by the DOE Atmospheric System Research program.
References
Shinozuka, Y., et al. 2013. “Hyperspectral Aerosol Optical Depths from TCAP Flights,” Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres 118, 12,180-12,194. DOI: 10.1002/2013JD020596.