Scientists take to the skies over Azores to gather cloud data
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Category: ResearchType: News
Source: PNNL
Date: Friday, May 12th, 2017
News Brief
May 12, 2017 
THE AZORES - Clouds in the eastern North Atlantic region will come under scrutiny from a bevy of airplane-based instruments this summer, courtesy of the D.O.E.'s Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Climate Research Facility.
Scientists will call upon 55 separate instruments to analyze the physical and chemical properties of clouds and aerosols, tiny airborne particles that play a huge role in the atmosphere. The instruments will be flown aboard the Gulfstream-159, or G-1, research aircraft, the centerpiece of the ARM Aerial Facility managed by DOE's Pacific Northwest National Lab. Scientists will conduct 20 missions this summer and 20 in the winter, operating out of a joint Portugal- U.S. airbase in the Azores.
Aboard a D.O.E. aircraft for the 1st time will be a Holographic Detector for Clouds (HOLODEC), a wing-mounted device that will help scientists learn how the size distribution of cloud droplets is affected by the mixing of cloudy, wet air and drier, clear air.
The experiments will help scientists understand the interactions between low clouds and aerosols. The plan is led by scientist Jian Wang of Brookhaven National Lab, one of 9 D.O.E. labs that operate the ARM facility.
More information on the current experiments is accessible in this article from ARM.
Tags: Environment, Fundamental Science, Climate Science, Atmospheric Science, Aerosols
Interdisciplinary teams at Pacific Northwest National Lab address many of America's most pressing issues in energy, the environment and national security through advances in basic and applied science. Founded in 1965, PNNL employs 4,400 staff and has an yearly budget of nearly $1 billion. It is managed by Battelle for the D.O.E.'s Office of Science. As the single biggest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, the Office of Science is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information on PNNL, visit the PNNL News Center, or follow PNNL on Facebook, Google+, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter.
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