ASDC | MACPEX_Sondes_Data

MACPEX Level 2

Entry Title: MACPEX Balloonsondes and Ozonesondes Data

Entry ID: MACPEX_Sondes_Data_1

Field Campaigns

Description

MACPEX_Sondes_Data is the balloonsonde and ozonesonde data collected during the Mid-latitude Airborne Cirrus Properties Experiment (MACPEX). Data were collected by the balloon borne frost point hygrometer (balloon FPH) and ozonesondes. Data collection for this product is complete.

The Mid-latitude Airborne Cirrus Properties Experiment (MACPEX) was an airborne field campaign that deployed from March 18th to April 26th, 2011. MACPEX sought to investigate cirrus cloud properties and the processes that affect their impact on radiation. The campaign conducted science flights using the NASA WB-57 aircraft based out of Ellington Airfield, Texas. Science flights were focused on the central North America vicinity, with an emphasis over the Southern Great Plains atmospheric observatory (established by the Department of Energy’s (DoE) Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility) site in Oklahoma. MACPEX was a joint effort between NASA, the NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL), the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), and several U.S. universities.

The WB-57 contained a comprehensive instrument payload for detailed in-situ measurements that were targeted to answer MACPEX’s four major science questions. The first science question that MACPEX explored was how prevalent the smaller crystals are in cirrus clouds, and how important they are for extinction, radiative forcing, and radiative heating. MACPEX also sought to understand how cirrus microphysical properties (particle size distribution, ice crystal habit, extinction, ice water content) are related to the dynamical forcing driving cloud formation. Researchers also investigated how cirrus microphysical properties are related to aerosol loading and composition, including the abundance of heterogeneous ice nuclei. Lastly, this campaign examined how cirrus microphysical properties evolve through the lifecycles of the clouds, and the role radiatively driven dynamical motions play.

In addition to the in-situ measurements, four flights were coordinated to validate the NASA EOS/A-Train satellite observations. NOAA also launched balloon sondes and ozonesondes, which were used to acquire data about the frost point and water vapor in the atmosphere. The balloon sondes and ozonesondes also acquired pressure, temperature, and humidity data, as well as measurements regarding the ozone in the atmosphere.

DOI

10.5067/ASDC/SUBORBITAL/MACPEX_Sondes_Data_1

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MACPEX Project Home Page

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GENERAL DOCUMENTATION

MACPEX Science Flight Information

PUBLICATIONS

AGU Article, Evaluation of UT/LS hygrometer accuracy by intercomparison during the NASA MACPEX mission

BAMS Article, Ice Particle Mass–Dimensional Relationship Retrieval and Uncertainty Evaluation Using the Optimal Estimation Methodology Applied to the MACPEX Data

BAMS Article, The Microphysical Properties of Small Ice Particles Measured by the Small Ice Detector-3 Probe during the MACPEX Field Campaign

MACPEX Q&A on nasa.gov

From GCMD Science Keywords:

AIR TEMPERATURE > SURFACE TEMPERATURE
ATMOSPHERIC OZONE > OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
WIND DIRECTION > SURFACE WINDS
ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE MEASUREMENTS
WIND SPEED > SURFACE WINDS
RELATIVE HUMIDITY > HUMIDITY > WATER VAPOR INDICATORS
WATER VAPOR MIXING RATIO PROFILES > WATER VAPOR PROFILES
WIND DIRECTION > UPPER LEVEL WINDS
WIND SPEED > UPPER LEVEL WINDS
POTENTIAL TEMPERATURE > SURFACE TEMPERATURE
UPPER LEVEL WINDS
WATER VAPOR > WATER VAPOR INDICATORS
UPPER AIR TEMPERATURE
ALTITUDE
SURFACE WINDS
GEOPOTENTIAL HEIGHT
SURFACE TEMPERATURE

Data Distribution

File Format(s):

ICARTT

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Spatial Information

Spatial Coverage: (S: 25, N: 35), (W: -100, E: -87)
Spatial Coverage Type: Horizontal Vertical
Coordinate System: Cartesian
Granule Spatial Representation: Cartesian

Locations

NORTH AMERICA UNITED STATES OF AMERICA OKLAHOMA TEXAS MID-LATITUDE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE WESTERN HEMISPHERE TROPOSPHERE STRATOSPHERE

Temporal Information

Temporal Coverage: 2011-04-12 - 2011-04-25

Platforms

Permanent Land Sites

GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS

OZONESONDES

RADIOSONDES

HYGROMETERS

Metadata Dates

Created on 2021-12-07

Last updated on 2023-02-27