KA-20240815a

KA-20240815a#

in_cloud insitu_aerosol

Crew#

Robert Oscar David, Sorin Ghemulet, Marius Corbu

EarthCARE target scenarios

Due to instrument failures, no correlative measurements underneath EarthCARE could be performed.

Flight summary

During the research flight on 15th August 2024, we targeted an EarthCARE overpass above mixed-phase clouds. However, we encountered probe failures on the way out to the correlative EC leg, and after multiple probe restarts the mission had to be scrubbed. On the way home, we managed to fix the probes to be ready for the next flight.

Track#

track

Flight path superimposed on the natural color image from NOAA’s Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) 16 satellite on 15th August 2024 at 15:40 UTC. The location of the aircraft at the time of the EarthCARE overpass is shown by the orange cross.

Conditions#

Distinct aerosol layer and mixed-phase clouds experienced during the flight. Mission aborted before EC leg.

Flight video#

No flight video available as mission had to be aborted before EC leg.

Events#

Time (UTC)

Comment

13:50

Takeoff Praia

14:46

Restart probes but problems continue

15:18

Mission scrubbed

16:02

Probes fixed on way home

16:20

Landing Praia

Execution#

  • 13:41 UTC: All probes are good

  • 13:50 UTC: takeoff (12:50 LT)

  • heading to first waypoint FL230

  • 14:24 UTC: anti icing on

  • 14:46 UTC: restarted probes, now heading @FL100 to see clouds above at WP1

  • 14:50 UTC: probe restart by accident

  • 14:53 UTC: probes still not working

  • 15:18 UTC: Mission scrubbed because probes not working

  • 16:02 UTC: Probes fixed…yay…but too late for EC cal/val effort, will record aerosol until landing

Impressions#

  • 13:57 UTC: FL090, above cloud layer, seeing dust on probes up to 5um

  • 14:01 UTC: FL130, was a lull in dust now back again but less now for sure

  • 14:10 UTC: FL215, no more Saharan dust layer

  • 14:26 UTC: approaching cloud, some stuff on CAPS, ice on 2D-S

  • 14:27 UTC: MPC cloud found, stellar dendrites, CAPS froze

  • 14:53 UTC: upper cloud deck thinning, descending to cloud deck below, cloud probes still not working

  • 16:03 UTC: lots of dust

  • 16:07 UTC: lots of dust

  • 16:15 UTC: approaching cloud, landing through cloud layer

Instrument status & quicklooks#

Instrument

Operational

Comment

CAS-DPOL

❌

All probes died due to breaker cut

CIP

❌

All probes died due to breaker cut

LWC Hotwire

❌

None

FCDP

❌

All probes died due to breaker cut

2D-S

❌

All probes died due to breaker cut

CPI

❌

All probes died due to breaker cut

Gopros

✅

None

In-flight view of Cloud Probe Imager (CPI).

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