 |
 |
 |
 |
ARCTIC STRATUS AT 2207 - 2213 UTC.
CLEAR SKY OVER BROKEN SEA ICE AT 2227 - 2235 UTC.
|
|
|
|
|
Notes from Mike King:
Author: Dr. Michael King
Mission Scientist: Dr. Michael King
ER-2 Pilot: Jim Barrilleaux
Takeoff: 22May1998 2010 UTC
Landing: 23May1998 0100 UTC
Flight Duration: 4:50
Objective:
The objective of this mission was to fly the ER-2 repeatedly over the surface site at Barrow (71°19.37’N, 156°34.9’W) and nearby open water and fast ice of the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas.
Coordinations:
The ER-2 flew three parallel and repeating ground tracks of 261 km in length that were parallel to the NOAA-14 ground track at 2304 UTC (heading of 347.13° at SHEBA). Due to malfunction of the backup navigation equipment onboard the aircraft, the mission design that included parallel ground tracks over SHEBA was modified to fly a similar pattern over ARM.
The entire flight track over the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas was cloud
free, with Arctic stratus present over land and nearby coastal fast ice.
Other coordinations included:
F-14 satellite (2237 UTC)
NOAA-14 satellite (2304 UTC)
Principal plane of the sun (2218 UTC)
All times, orbital inclinations, and timings were based on overflights of SHEBA (76° 20.76’ N), rather than Barrow, so some of the angles are off of the intended times and orbits planned for this mission.
Key Flight Legs:
The ER-2 flew a NNW flight line from point 1 (70°09’N, 155°31’W) to point 2 (72°26’N, 157°14’W), then reversed course, overflying the ARM site each time (two passes). The aircraft then flew a parallel track displaced 40 km to the west with two round trip flight legs, followed by another pair of flight legs displaced 40 km to the east. Each flight leg was 261 km in length. The flight tracks were all parallel and on a heading of 347.1°/167.1°, corresponding to the 2304 UTC.
The AirMISR was turned on for six acquisitions over the Barrow ARM
site and nearby tundra, including acquisitions when the sun was in the
NOAA-14 and F-14 satellites passed over the area. The AirMISR operated
at the following times:
2112.5-2128.5 UTC (ARM)
2139.5-2154.5 UTC (ARM; sun in principal plane at ARM)
2208.5-2225.5 UTC (west; sun in principal plane at SHEBA)
2234.25-2250 UTC (west; F-14)
2302.5-2317.5 UTC (east; NOAA-14)
2330.75-2345.75 UTC (east)
Pilot Report:
The ER-2 pilot reported Arctic stratus conditions over the tundra until 55 km north of Barrow, with clear sky and possible haze or thin cirrus over the ice.
Meteorology:
A single-layer stratus cloud system covered Barrow, extending about 100 km north over the ice. Cloud top temperatures were nearly uniform, surface winds were easterly around 20 kts.
Instrument Status:
AirMISR (Airborne Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer): The 2nd,
3rd, and 4th runs collected all 9 look angles, while the remaining
3 scenes collected a minimum of nadir and the first 4 view angles
AMPR (Advanced Microwave Precipitation Radiometer): Worked well
CLS (Cloud Lidar System): Worked well
HIS (High-resolution Interferometer Sounder): Worked well
MAS (MODIS Airborne Simulator): Port 4 (8.3-14.0 µm) disconnected
for nitrogen purge
MIR (Millimeter-wave Imaging Radiometer): Worked well
SSFR (Solar Spectral Flux Radiometer): Worked well