The convective storm initiation project

Copyright @ 2007 AMSThe Convective Storm Initiation Project (CSIP) is an international project to understand precisely where, when, and how convective clouds form and develop into showers in the mainly maritime environment of southern England. A major aim of CSIP is to compare the results of the very high resolution Met Office weather forecasting model with detailed observations of the early stages of convective clouds and to use the newly gained understanding to improve the predictions of the model. A large array of ground-based instruments plus two instrumented aircraft, from the U.K. National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS) and the German Institute for Meteorology and Climate Research (IMK), Karlsruhe, were deployed in southern England, over an area centered on the meteorological radars at Chilbolton, during the summers of 2004 and 2005. In addition to a variety of ground-based remote-sensing instruments, numerous rawin-sondes were released at one- to two-hourly intervals from six closely spaced sites. The Met Office weather radar network and Meteosat satellite imagery were used to provide context for the observations made by the instruments deployed during CSIP. This article presents an overview of the CSIP field campaign and examples from CSIP of the types of convective initiation phenomena that are typical in the United Kingdom. It shows the way in which certain kinds of observational data are able to reveal these phenomena and gives an explanation of how the analyses of data from the field campaign will be used in the development of an improved very high resolution NWP model for operational use.This work is funded by the National Environment Research Council following an initial award from the HEFCE Joint Infrastructure Fund

Vertical stratification of the air microbiome in the lower troposphere

The troposphere constitutes the final frontier of global ecosystem research due to technical challenges arising from its size, low biomass, and gaseous state. Using a vertical testing array comprising a meteorological tower and a research aircraft, we conducted synchronized measurements of meteorological parameters and airborne biomass (n = 480) in the vertical air column up to 3,500 m. The taxonomic analysis of metagenomic data revealed differing patterns of airborne microbial community composition with respect to time of day and height above ground. The temporal and spatial resolution of our study demonstrated that the diel cycle of airborne microorganisms is a ground-based phenomenon that is entirely absent at heights >1,000 m. In an integrated analysis combining meteorological and biological data, we demonstrate that atmospheric turbulence, identified by potential temperature and high-frequency three-component wind measurements, is the key driver of bioaerosol dynamics in the lower troposphere. Multivariate regression analysis shows that at least 50% of identified airborne microbial taxa (n = ∼10,000) are associated with either ground or height, allowing for an understanding of dispersal patterns of microbial taxa in the vertical air column. Due to the interconnectedness of atmospheric turbulence and temperature, the dynamics of microbial dispersal are likely to be impacted by rising global temperatures, thereby also affecting ecosystems on the planetary surface

A New Airborne Doppler Lidar for Boundary Layer Research & LES-Based Simulation

Airborne Doppler lidar measurements are a valuable tool in meteorological research. A new airborne Doppler lidar system has been developed jointly by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and the Technical University of Brunswick. The system is designed for use aboard a medium-range turboprop aircraft, thereby targeting meso-scale flow phenomena. In order to optimize system setup and retrieval strategy, as well as evaluate measurement quality under turbulent conditions, a first LES-based airborne Doppler lidar simulator has been developed. The results provide detailed insight into airborne Doppler lidar wind profiling characteristics

A New Airborne Doppler Lidar for Boundary Layer Research & LES-Based Simulation

Airborne Doppler lidar measurements are a valuable tool in meteorological research. A new airborne Doppler lidar system has been developed jointly by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and the Technical University of Brunswick. The system is designed for use aboard a medium-range turboprop aircraft, thereby targeting meso-scale flow phenomena. In order to optimize system setup and retrieval strategy, as well as evaluate measurement quality under turbulent conditions, a first LES-based airborne Doppler lidar simulator has been developed. The results provide detailed insight into airborne Doppler lidar wind profiling characteristics

Pilot State Monitoring Wearable Systems in Real Environment: Pilot’s Usability and Acceptance Feedback to Enhance Risk Management

In times of increasingly complex working environment, Airline pilots seems to be exposed to the risk of sustained cognitive demands, stress, workload that could potentially lead to cognitive fatigue. In this situation, the likelihood of human errors/mistakes could also increase. The main challenge of the present research is to validate and implement a Pilot State Monitoring (PSM) wearable system and near-infrared cameras to identify actual stress and workload levels of pilots, in real-environment flights. The setup of PSM devices into the live environment of an airline cockpit requires an assessment of technological, organizational, and safety & security aspects, including pilots’ usability and acceptance of the wearable PSM itself. A three-fold approach, adapting ISO 9241–210, was used to include the context of use and organizational requirement into the design process. Such methodological approach allows to assess the effectiveness of wearable for predicting actual pi-lot’s workload, stress, and fatigue in real-environment flights

The convective storm initiation project

The Convective Storm Initiation Project (CSIP) is an international project to understand precisely where, when, and how convective clouds form and develop into showers in the mainly maritime environment of southern England. A major aim of CSIP is to compare the results of the very high resolution Met Office weather forecasting model with detailed observations of the early stages of convective clouds and to use the newly gained understanding to improve the predictions of the model. A large array of ground-based instruments plus two instrumented aircraft, from the U.K. National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS) and the German Institute for Meteorology and Climate Research (IMK), Karlsruhe, were deployed in southern England, over an area centered on the meteorological radars at Chilbolton, during the summers of 2004 and 2005. In addition to a variety of ground-based remote-sensing instruments, numerous rawin-sondes were released at one- to two-hourly intervals from six closely spaced sites. The Met Office weather radar network and Meteosat satellite imagery were used to provide context for the observations made by the instruments deployed during CSIP. This article presents an overview of the CSIP field campaign and examples from CSIP of the types of convective initiation phenomena that are typical in the United Kingdom. It shows the way in which certain kinds of observational data are able to reveal these phenomena and gives an explanation of how the analyses of data from the field campaign will be used in the development of an improved very high resolution NWP model for operational use. © 2008 American Meteorological Society Privacy Policy and Disclaimer