Lidar / Raw Data
This dataset contains raw data from the Leosphere WindCube V2.1 deployed at Nantucket, MA, by WHOI for WFIP-3. The lidar was tall tower validated in May 2023.
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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.
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Architecture of a Data Portal for Publishing and Delivering Open Data for Atmospheric Measurement
Atmospheric data are collected by researchers every day. Campaigns such as GOAmazon 2014/2015 and the Amazon Tall Tower Observatory collect essential data on aerosols, gases, cloud properties, and meteorological parameters in the Brazilian Amazon basin. These data products provide insights and essential information for analyzing and predicting natural processes. However, in Brazil, it is estimated that more than 80% of the scientific data collected are not published due to the lack of web portals that collect and store these data. This makes it difficult, or even impossible, to access and integrate the data, which can result in the loss of significant amounts of information and significantly affect the understanding of the overall data. To address this problem, we propose a data portal architecture and open data deployment that enable Big Data processing, human interaction, and download-oriented approaches with tools that help users catalog, publish and visualize atmospheric data. Thus, we describe the architecture developed, based on the experience of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Data Center, which incorporates the principles of FAIR, the infrastructure and content management system for managing scientific data. The portal partial results were tested with environmental data from contaminated areas at the University of São Paulo. Overall, this data portal creates more shared knowledge about atmospheric processes by providing users with access to open environmental data.
96 KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT AND PRESERVATION↗
Intercomparison of Planetary Boundary Layer Heights Using Remote Sensing Retrievals and ERA5 Reanalysis over Central Amazonia
The atmospheric boundary layer height (zi) is a key parameter in the vertical transport of mass, energy, moisture, and chemical species between the surface and the free atmosphere. There is a lack of long-term and continuous observations of zi, however, particularly for remote regions, such as the Amazon forest. Reanalysis products, such as ERA5, can fill this gap by providing temporally and spatially resolved information on zi. In this work, we evaluate the ERA5 estimates of zi (zi-ERA5) for two locations in the Amazon and corrected them by means of ceilometer, radiosondes, and SODAR measurements (zi-experimental). The experimental data were obtained at the remote Amazon Tall Tower Observatory (ATTO) with its pristine tropical forest cover and the T3 site downwind of the city of Manaus with a mixture of forest (63%), pasture (17%), and rivers (20%). We focus on the rather typical year 2014 and the El Niño year 2015. The comparison of the experimental vs. ERA5 zi data yielded the following results: (i) zi-ERA5 underestimates zi-experimental daytime at the T3 site for both years 2014 (30%, underestimate) and 2015 (15%, underestimate); (ii) zi-ERA5 overestimates zi-experimental daytime at ATTO site (12%, overestimate); (iii) during nighttime, no significant correlation between the zi-experimental and zi-ERA5 was observed. Based on these findings, we propose a correction for the daytime zi-ERA5, for both sites and for both years, which yields a better agreement between experimental and ERA5 data. These results and corrections are relevant for studies at ATTO and the T3 site and can likely also be applied at further locations in the Amazon.
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
Aerosols from anthropogenic and biogenic sources and their interactions – modeling aerosol formation, optical properties, and impacts over the central Amazon basin
The Green Ocean Amazon experiment – GoAmazon 2014–2015 – explored the interactions between natural biogenic forest emissions from central Amazonia and urban air pollution from Manaus. Previous GoAmazon 2014–2015 studies showed that nitrogen oxide (NO x = NO + NO 2 ) and sulfur oxide (SO x ) emissions from Manaus strongly interact with biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs), affecting secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation. In previous studies, ground-based and aircraft measurements provided evidence of SOA formation and strong changes in aerosol composition and properties. Aerosol optical properties also evolve, and their impacts on the Amazonian ecosystem can be significant. As particles age, some processes, such as SOA production, black carbon (BC) deposition, particle growth and the BC lensing effect change the aerosol optical properties, affecting the solar radiation flux at the surface. This study analyzes data and models SOA formation using the Weather Research and Forecasting with Chemistry (WRF-Chem) model to assess the spatial variability in aerosol optical properties as the Manaus plumes interact with the natural atmosphere. The following aerosol optical properties are investigated: single scattering albedo (SSA), asymmetry parameter (g aer ), absorption Ångström exponent (AAE) and scattering Ångström exponent (SAE). These simulations were validated using ground-based measurements at three experimental sites, namely the Amazon Tall Tower Observatory – ATTO (T0a), downtown Manaus (T1), Tiwa Hotel (T2) and Manacapuru (T3), as well as the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Gulfstream 1 (G-1) aircraft flights. WRF-Chem simulations were performed over 7 d during March 2014. Results show a mean biogenic SOA (BSOA) mass enrichment of 512 % at the T1 site, 450 % in regions downwind of Manaus, such as the T3 site, and 850 % in areas north of the T3 site in simulations with anthropogenic emissions. The SOA formation is rather fast, with about 80 % of the SOA mass produced in 3–4 h. Comparing the plume from simulations with and without anthropogenic emissions, SSA shows a downwind reduction of approximately 10 %, 11 % and 6 % at the T1, T2 and T3 sites, respectively. Other regions, such as those further downwind of the T3 site, are also affected. The g aer values increased from 0.62 to 0.74 at the T1 site and from 0.67 to 0.72 at the T3 site when anthropogenic emissions are active. During the Manaus plume-aging process, a plume tracking analysis shows an increase in SSA from 0.91 close to Manaus to 0.98 160 km downwind of Manaus as a result of SOA production and BC deposition.
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
Observing low-altitude features in ozone concentrations in a shoreline environment via uncrewed aerial systems
Abstract. Ozone is a pollutant formed in the atmosphere by photochemical processes involving nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) when exposed to sunlight. Tropospheric boundary layer ozone is regularly measured at ground stations and sampled infrequently through balloon, lidar, and crewed aircraft platforms, which have demonstrated characteristic patterns with altitude. Here, to better resolve vertical profiles of ozone within the atmospheric boundary layer, we developed and evaluated an uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) platform for measuring ozone and meteorological parameters of temperature, pressure, and humidity. To evaluate this approach, a UAS was flown with a portable ozone monitor and a meteorological temperature and humidity sensor to compare to tall tower measurements in northern Wisconsin. In June 2020, as a part of the WiscoDISCO20 campaign, a DJI M600 hexacopter UAS was flown with the same sensors to measure Lake Michigan shoreline ozone concentrations. This latter UAS experiment revealed a low-altitude structure in ozone concentrations in a shoreline environment showing the highest ozone at altitudes from 20–100 m a.g.l. These first such measurements of low-altitude ozone via a UAS in the Great Lakes region revealed a very shallow layer of ozone-rich air lying above the surface.
Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences↗
Using atmospheric observations to quantify annual biogenic carbon dioxide fluxes on the Alaska North Slope
The continued warming of the Arctic could release vast stores of carbon into the atmosphere from high-latitude ecosystems, especially from thawing permafrost. Increasing uptake of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) by vegetation during longer growing seasons may partially offset such release of carbon. However, evidence of significant net annual release of carbon from site-level observations and model simulations across tundra ecosystems has been inconclusive. To address this knowledge gap, we combined top-down observations of atmospheric CO 2 concentration enhancements from aircraft and a tall tower, which integrate ecosystem exchange over large regions, with bottom-up observed CO 2 fluxes from tundra environments and found that the Alaska North Slope is not a consistent net source nor net sink of CO 2 to the atmosphere (ranging from ₋6 to +6 Tg C yr -1 for 2012–2017). Our analysis suggests that significant biogenic CO 2 fluxes from unfrozen terrestrial soils, and likely inland waters, during the early cold season (September–December) are major factors in determining the net annual carbon balance of the North Slope, implying strong sensitivity to the rapidly warming freeze-up period. At the regional level, we find no evidence of the previously reported large late-cold-season (January–April) CO 2 emissions to the atmosphere during the study period. Despite the importance of the cold-season CO 2 emissions to the annual total, the interannual variability in the net CO 2 flux is driven by the variability in growing season fluxes. During the growing season, the regional net CO 2 flux is also highly sensitive to the distribution of tundra vegetation types throughout the North Slope. This study shows that quantification and characterization of year-round CO 2 fluxes from the heterogeneous terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems in the Arctic using both site-level and atmospheric observations are important to accurately project the Earth system response to future warming.
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
Capturing plume behavior in complex terrain: an overview of the Nevada National Security Site Meteorological Experiment (METEX21)
METEX21 was an atmospheric tracer release experiment executed at the Department of Energy’s Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) in the southwestern U.S to study terrain-induced wind and thermodynamic conditions that influence local-scale (<5-km) plume transport under varying atmospheric forcing conditions. Meteorological observations were collected using 10-m tall meteorological towers, 2-m tall tripods with 3-d sonic anemometers, a 3-m tall eddy covariance flux tower, Doppler profiling lidars, Doppler scanning lidars, weather-balloon launched radiosondes, and a tethered balloon equipped with wind, temperature, and aerosol sensors at heights up to 800 m. A smoke tracer was released along three transects in the horizontal and vertical directions and observed with video cameras, aerosol sensors and lidars (via aerosol backscatter). The observations showed evidence of large-scale/synoptic transience as well as local-scale upslope and downslope flows, along-axis valley flows, recirculation eddies on leeward slopes, and periods of strong shear and veer aloft. The release days were classified as either synoptically-driven or locally-driven, and a single case day is presented in detail for each. Synoptically-forced days show relatively narrow smoke plumes traveling down the valley from north to south (with the predominant wind direction), with little deviation in transport direction regardless of the elevation or ground locations of the smoke releases, except near the presence of leeside recirculation eddies. Locally-forced days exhibit a wider range of plume behavior due to the combination of thermally-induced valley and slope flows, which are often flowing in different cardinal directions, and wind shear found aloft at higher altitudes and elevations. We saw evidence of smoke lofting on top of the mesas due to strong upslope flows on these days. A major finding of this experiment was the effectiveness of scanning lidars to measure 2-dimensional plume transport out to a 2–3 km distance; much farther than could be visibly observed. METEX21 was the first of three planned tracer experiments at NNSS, and future experiments will incorporate multiple tracers to improve individual plume identification so that finer resolution flow details can be attained from these measurements, as well as deploy a larger suite of meteorological instrumentation, including more temperature profiling data.
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
Life cycle assessment of ultra-tall wind turbine towers comparing concrete additive manufacturing to conventional manufacturing
Not Available
Jones, Kathryn E. S. (ORCID:0009000947052768)↗
Coupling Mesoscale Budget Components to Large-Eddy Simulations for Wind-Energy Applications
To simulate the airflow through a wind farm across a wide range of atmospheric conditions, microscale models (e.g., large-eddy simulation, LES, models) have to be coupled with mesoscale models, because microscale models lack the atmospheric physical processes to represent time-varying local forcing. Here we couple mesoscale model outputs to a LES solver by applying mesoscale momentum- and temperature-budget components from the Weather Research and Forecasting model to the governing equations of the Simulator fOr Wind Farm Applications model. We test whether averaging the budget components affects the LES results with regard to quantities of interest to wind energy. Our study focuses on flat terrain during a quiescent diurnal cycle. The simulation results are compared with observations from a 200-m tall meteorological tower and a wind-profiling radar, by analyzing time series, profiles, rotor-averaged quantities, and spectra. However, while results show that averaging reduces the spatio-temporal variability of the mesoscale momentum-budget components, when coupled with the LES model, the mesoscale bias (in comparison with observations of wind speed and direction, and potential temperature) is not reduced. In contrast, the LES technique can correct for shear and veer. In both cases, however, averaging the budget components shows no significant impact on the mean flow quantities in the microscale and is not necessary when coupling mesocale budget components to the LES model.
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AmeriFlux FLUXNET-1F US-xUK NEON The University of Kansas Field Station (UKFS)
This is the AmeriFlux Management Project (AMP) created FLUXNET-1F version of the carbon flux data for the site US-xUK NEON The University of Kansas Field Station (UKFS). This is the FLUXNET version of the carbon flux data for the site US-xUK NEON The University of Kansas Field Station (UKFS) produced by applying the standard ONEFlux (1F) software. Site Description - Along an eastern deciduous forest and tallgrass prairie transition zone just north of Lawrence, Kansas, this 6 km2 terrestrial field site is located at the University of Kansas Field Station. A 116' tall flux tower rises out of a mixed hardwood forest dominated by white ash trees. Field obdservations of plants, animals, soils and microbes are collected around the tower and in the nearby tallgrass prairie.
Network), NEON (National Ecological Observatory↗
AmeriFlux FLUXNET-1F US-xSP NEON Soaproot Saddle (SOAP)
This is the AmeriFlux Management Project (AMP) created FLUXNET-1F version of the carbon flux data for the site US-xSP NEON Soaproot Saddle (SOAP). This is the FLUXNET version of the carbon flux data for the site US-xSP NEON Soaproot Saddle (SOAP) produced by applying the standard ONEFlux (1F) software. Site Description - The Soaproot Saddle is a complex terrain of coarse hills, steep slopes and narrow drainages. With an elevation of 3274 - 4537’ this site encompasses 1438 acres of mixed conifer forests that are experiencing high levels of mortality due to native Pine beetles. At the core of this site stands a 171’ tall flux tower that collects physical and chemical properties of atmosphere and related process. Soaproot Saddle also hosts an array of sensor measurements along with field observations collected by highly trained NEON staff. The automated instrument measurements and some of the terrestrial observational safor this field site are colocted with NEON's aquatic site, Upper Big Creek, which is located just north of Soaproot Saddle's site boundaries.
Network), NEON (National Ecological Observatory [N↗
Robotics for Energy Infrastructure Construction on Earth and Beyond: Pilot Study Exploring Level 3-4 Semi-Autonomous Installation of a Reduced-Scale Photovoltaic Power Plant Prototype: Preprint
There is a growing need to build energy infrastructure at massive scale on both Earth and in space. On Earth, increasing electricity demand from applications such as AI data centers is driving rapid expansion of power systems, while in space, long-duration missions such as lunar operations require reliable and resilient energy infrastructure that can be deployed quickly. These needs outpace the capabilities of conventional construction methods. Robotic construction offers a path to faster, lower-cost, and more consistent deployment, yet most existing approaches focus on automating individual tasks rather than end-to-end assembly. The Industrialized Construction Innovation (ICI) team at the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR), in collaboration with the Colorado School of Mines, has been investigating robotics and automation strategies for rapid end-to-end energy infrastructure construction. This paper presents a pilot study demonstrating level 3-4 semi-autonomous, end-to-end robotic assembly of a reduced-scale photovoltaic power plant prototype under terrestrial conditions. The approach combines hardware redesign of photovoltaic components for robotic compatibility, discrete-event and physics-based robotic simulations in synthetic environments, and sim-to-real deployment to execute end-to-end robotic assembly of[NM1.1][NM1.2] tracking components, structural members, photovoltaic modules, and embedded electrical connections. The pilot identifies key limitations like tolerance management, perception and localization, end effector capability, fastening methods, and multi-physics simulation fidelity, that must be addressed to enable end-to-end robotic assembly of full-scale energy infrastructure. The study highlights how these insights inform scaling strategies for terrestrial energy infrastructure and adaptation to unstructured and extreme environments, including off-world scenarios such as robotic assembly of vertical tall lunar towers.
14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
Drivers of Decadal Carbon Fluxes Across Temperate Ecosystems
Long-running eddy covariance flux towers provide insights into how the terrestrial carbon cycle operates over multiple timescales. Here, we evaluated variation in net ecosystem exchange (NEE) of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) across the Chequamegon Ecosystem-Atmosphere Study AmeriFlux core site cluster in the upper Great Lakes region of the USA from 1997 to 2020. The tower network included two mature hardwood forests with differing management regimes (US-WCr and US-Syv), two fen wetlands with varying levels of canopy sheltering and vegetation (US-Los and US-ALQ), and a very tall (400 m) landscape-level tower (US-PFa). Together, they provided over 70 site-years of observations. The 19-tower Chequamegon Heterogenous Ecosystem Energy-balance Study Enabled by a High-density Extensive Array of Detectors 2019 campaign centered around US-PFa provided additional information on the spatial variation of NEE. Decadal variability was present in all long-term sites, but cross-site coherence in interannual NEE in the earlier part of the record became weaker with time as non-climatic factors such as local disturbances likely dominated flux time series. Average decadal NEE at the tall tower transitioned from carbon source to sink to near neutral over 24 years. Respiration had a greater effect than photosynthesis on driving variations in NEE at all sites. Declining snowfall offset potential increases in assimilation from warmer springs, as less-insulated soils delayed start of spring green-up. Higher CO 2 increased maximum net assimilation parameters but not total gross primary productivity. Stand-scale sites were larger net sinks than the landscape tower. Clustered, long-term carbon flux observations provide value for understanding the diverse links between carbon and climate and the challenges of upscaling these responses across space.
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
WREF tower profiling lidar
The tower profiling lidar #ZX300-1381 was deployed on top of the 74 m tall WREF NEON tower. The zip files contain high frequency data. The excel files are 10-min averages.
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MLBS tower profiling lidar
The tower profiling lidar #ZX300-1381 was deployed on top of the 30 m tall MLBS NEON tower in an Appalachian forest. Prior to being deployed at MLBS, this lidar was on top of the tower at WREF in Washington. The zip files contain high frequency data. The Excel files are 10-min averages.
17 WIND ENERGY↗
AmeriFlux PE-QFR Quistococha Forest Reserve
This is the AmeriFlux version of the carbon flux data for the site PE-QFR Quistococha Forest Reserve. Site Description - The study site is located at Quistococha on the outskirts of Iquitos, Loreto region, Peru. Quistococha is a natural protected forest reserve and an official scientific research area for IIAP. The EC flux tower (45 m tall) is located at 73o 19’ 08.1’’ W; 3o 50’ 03.9’’ S within a pristine palm swamp peatland that is within the reserve. The major vegetation type is Mauritia flexuosa (moriche palm, or aguaje in Spanish, reaching 35 m height).
Roman, Tyler↗
AmeriFlux US-xBA NEON Barrow Environmental Observatory (BARR)
This is the AmeriFlux version of the carbon flux data for the site US-xBA NEON Barrow Environmental Observatory (BARR). Site Description - Located three hundred miles north of the Arctic Circle, the Barrow field site landscape is representative of the polygon tundra and lake systems across the northern extent of the North Slope of Alaska. Barrow spans 50 square kilometers and includes a 26’ tall meteorological flux tower and nearby soil sensors. NEON scientists also collect field observations throughout the field site.
Network), NEON (National Ecological Observatory↗
AmeriFlux FLUXNET-1F PE-QFR Quistococha Forest Reserve
This is the AmeriFlux Management Project (AMP) created FLUXNET-1F version of the carbon flux data for the site PE-QFR Quistococha Forest Reserve. This is the FLUXNET version of the carbon flux data for the site PE-QFR Quistococha Forest Reserve produced by applying the standard ONEFlux (1F) software. Site Description - The study site is located at Quistococha on the outskirts of Iquitos, Loreto region, Peru. Quistococha is a natural protected forest reserve and an official scientific research area for IIAP. The EC flux tower (45 m tall) is located at 73o 19’ 08.1’’ W; 3o 50’ 03.9’’ S within a pristine palm swamp peatland that is within the reserve. The major vegetation type is Mauritia flexuosa (moriche palm, or aguaje in Spanish, reaching 35 m height).
Roman, Tyler↗