Arctic Radiation - IceBridge Sea and Ice Experiment

The Spectrometers for Sky-Scanning, Sun-Tracking Atmospheric Research (4-STAR) is an airborne sun-sky spectrometer that measures direct solar irradiance and sky radiance. These measurements can be used to retrieve column-integrated information on aerosols, clouds, and trace gases, including aerosol optical depth, extinction, and single-scattering albedo. 4-STAR operates across 350-1650 nm and has a typical horizontal resolution of about 100 m.

A pyrometer is a remote-sensing infrared thermometer that measures the temperature of distant objects by detecting their thermal radiation. It can be mounted on aircraft, ground vehicles, or water-based platforms to observe surface and sea-surface temperatures. For atmospheric studies, the pyrometer typically operates in the 9.6 to 11.5 µm spectral range and has a temperature range of -25 to 200 degrees Celsius. Pyrometers typically have a response time of 5 milliseconds to 600 seconds.

The G-band Vapor Radiometer (GVR) is an airborne passive radiometer developed by ProSensing, Inc. It measures brightness temperature at 183.31 GHz to determine precipitable water vapor and liquid water path. GVR is highly sensitive to water vapor, making it well suited for low-humidity conditions. It has an antenna beamwidth of 1.5 degrees and a data rate of up to 20 Hz. GVR can be configured for ground-based operations and has been used at the Department of Energy (DoE) Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Central Facility site in Barrow, Alaska.

The Langley Aerosol Research Group Experiment (LARGE) is an in situ airborne instrument suite that measures aerosol and cloud microphysical and optical properties, including size distribution, number concentration, and scattering and absorption coefficients. LARGE includes the Ultra-High Sensitivity Aerosol Spectrometer (UHSAS), Particle-Into-Liquid Sampler (PILS), Particle Soot Absorption Photometer (PSAP), Cloud and Aerosol Spectrometer (CAS), Cloud Imaging Probe (CIP), and additional cloud and aerosol sensors. The LARGE instruments operate over the 450-700 nm wavelength range, detect particles from 0.003 to 20 μm, and measure at 1 Hz. It is primarily used for airborne measurements but can also be deployed on ground-based platforms, such as vehicles.

A pyrgeometer is a ground-based or airborne passive radiation sensor that measures downward and upward longwave radiation in the 4-50 μm spectral range. It uses a thermopile sensor to detect changes in resistance or voltage, which are then used to determine longwave radiation. These measurements can be used to calculate the infrared radiation flux. Pyrgeometers are typically used for climatological, meteorological, and agricultural applications.

Digital cameras provide imagery for research applications. Cameras are mounted on aircraft to collect aerial imagery for mapping and surveying, environmental monitoring, cloud observations, agriculture, geological studies, and other Earth science applications. They are also deployed at field sites to capture visual observations that monitor changes in land cover, vegetation, clouds, air quality, glaciers, and other phenomena.

The Land, Vegetation, and Ice Sensor (LVIS) is an airborne imaging lidar developed and operated by Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). It produces topographic maps and characterizes the vertical structure of vegetation and ice. It operates at a wavelength of 1064 nm and supports pulse repetition rates up to 500 Hz. LVIS has a swath width of 2 km and a horizontal resolution of 20 m at a flight altitude of 10 km.

The SEA Model WCM-2000 Multi Element Water Content System (WCM-2000) is an in situ airborne sensor manufactured by Science Engineering Associates (SEA), Inc. It directly measures liquid water content (LWC) and total water content (TWC) within clouds and can also be used to derive ice water content (IWC). The WCM-2000 measures LWC and TWC from 0 to 10 grams per cubic meter and has a typical data rate of 1 Hz.

Broadband Radiometers (BBR) are modified versions of the Kipp & Zonen CM-22 pyranometers and CG-4 pyrgeometers, adapted for use on airborne platforms with specialized instrument housings and signal amplification. BBR measures solar irradiance in the 0.2-3.6 μm wavelength range and infrared (IR) irradiance in the 4.5-42 μm range. These measurements can be used to determine net irradiance, radiative forcing, absorption, and albedo. It has a typical sampling rate of 1 Hz and a hemispheric field of view.

The Cloud Droplet Probe (CDP) is an in situ cloud probe manufactured by Droplet Measurement Technologies. It measures the size distribution and concentration of cloud particles ranging from 2 to 50 μm. The CDP detects light pulses scattered by a 658 nm laser to count and size individual cloud droplets. It operates at a data rate of 1 Hz and can detect concentrations of up to 2000 particles per cubic centimeter.

The Solar Spectral Flux Radiometer (SSFR) is an airborne radiometer developed by the Ames Atmospheric Radiation Group. It measures solar spectral irradiance in the troposphere. SSFR operates from 300 to 2150 nm and provides a spectral resolution of 8-12 nm. It typically collects data at 1 Hz and has a radiometric accuracy of 3%.

A pyranometer is a ground-based or airborne radiation sensor that measures solar irradiance over a hemispherical field of view. It detects the amount of solar energy reaching the surface, capturing both direct and diffuse sunlight. Pyranometers operate across a spectral range of 280-3000 nm. They are most commonly used for solar monitoring, climate research, weather forecasting, agriculture, and energy management.

Generic-Atmospheric State (Gen-AtmsState) refers to non-specific instruments on a platform that measure atmospheric state parameters. These are typically in situ sensors that measure temperature, pressure, humidity, and wind speed and direction. Types of atmospheric state instruments include thermometers, hygrometers, barometers, and anemometers.