Date: Nov 21, 2002

Mission: S-HIS test flight.  Aqua underflight for MODIS/AIRS L1B assessment.

Mission Objectives

Checkout mission for S-HIS; Aqua underflight for L1B assessment; CPL depolarization calibration flight.

Flight Summary

Take-off was at 1813 UTC.  ER-2 landed at 2050 UTC.

ER-2 launched about 15 minutes late for ATC. Pilot reported that CPL was fail on the apron so it was turned off for the entire mission as per plan. ER-2 flew from SAT to TX coast to fly south to began a racetrack with legs aligned with Aqua orbital track (347.5 true heading). Legs are about 10 minutes long. Started at SW corner flying northward on western leg (on Aqua orbital track), then flew southward leg (offset 12 NM to the east). Skies clear on both eastern legs. ER-2 then turned back to north for 2^nd run of western leg, meeting Aqua at 1940 UTC at about midpoint of the line. Continued on this heading to TX coast crossing at oblique angle for S-HIS and NAST-I vector pointing studies.

Good mission for L1B assessment and S-HIS/NAST-I comparisons.

Highlights

Clear sky scenes of deepwater GOM with Aqua directly overhead.

Instrument Status

• Modis Airborne Simulator (MAS): Operated. Good data.
• NPOESS Atmospheric Sounder Testbed (NAST-I): Operated. Good data.
• Cloud Physics Lidar (CPL): Operated. Data system failure.
• Scanner High-Resolution Interferometer Sounder (S-HIS): Operated. Good data.
• VIS video camera: Operated.  Good video collected.
• M/VIS mini video camera: Operated.  Good video collected.
• RC-10 Camera: Tested.

Additional Pilot Notes: Gulf of Mexico appeared to contain white caps.