Date: Dec 06, 2002

Mission: Aqua nighttime L1B and Cloud validation.

Mission Objectives

Collect nighttime low level stratus scenes for validating Aqua MODIS Cloud Mask and L1B.

Flight Summary

Take-off at 0530 UTC.  ER-2 landed at 0905 UTC.

ER-2 flew east from SAT to Aqua suborbital track south of Louisiana coast, reaching there about 90 minutes before Aqua overpass.  Flew a 12 minute leg towards SSW along Aqua suborbital track with low stratus undercast along entire line.  Then proceeded west to racetrack pattern (12 minute legs) oriented parallel to Aqua orbital track (22 deg offnadir view from Aqua).  Did two orbits of racetrack, meeting Aqua (0759 UTC) on easternmost leg of 2nd orbit.  Single layer low stratus undercast present on both legs of both orbits, except for the northern 10% which was cloud free.  ER-2 then returned to SAT.

Highlights

Nighttime low level stratus coverage over water background w/Aqua overpass.

Instrument Status

• Modis Airborne Simulator (MAS): Operated. Good data.
• NPOESS Atmospheric Sounder Testbed (NAST-I): Not Flown.
• Cloud Physics Lidar (CPL): Operated. Good data.
• Scanner High-Resolution Interferometer Sounder (S-HIS): Good data.
• VIS video camera: Not Operated.
• M/VIS mini video camera: Not Operated.
• RC-10 Cameras: Not Operated.

Additional Pilot Notes: extended the racetrack lines by about 2 minutes (i.e. 12 minute legs became 16 minute legs) at each end to time meeting the Aqua satellite as planned.