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NASA NTRS2005

Chemical Modeling for Studies of GeoTRACE Capabilities

Geostationary measurements of tropospheric pollutants with high spatial and temporal resolution will revolutionize the understanding and predictions of the chemically linked global pollutants aerosols and ozone. However, the capabilities of proposed geostationary instruments, particularly GeoTRACE, have not been thoroughly studied with model simulations. Such model simulations are important to answer the questions and allay the concerns that have been expressed in the atmospheric sciences community about the feasibility of such measurements. We proposed a suite of chemical transport model simulations using the EPA Models 3 chemical transport model, which obtains its meteorology from the MM-5 mesoscale model. The model output consists of gridded abundances of chemical pollutants and meteorological parameters every 30-60 minutes for cases that have occurred in the Eastern United States. This output was intended to be used to test the GeoTRACE capability to retrieve the tropospheric columns of these pollutants.

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NASA NTRS2006

An Operational Configuration of the ARPS Data Analysis System to Initialize WRF in the NM'S Environmental Modeling System

The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model is the next generation community mesoscale model designed to enhance collaboration between the research and operational sectors. The NM'S as a whole has begun a transition toward WRF as the mesoscale model of choice to use as a tool in making local forecasts. Currently, both the National Weather Service in Melbourne, FL (NWS MLB) and the Spaceflight Meteorology Group (SMG) are running the Advanced Regional Prediction System (AIRPS) Data Analysis System (ADAS) every 15 minutes over the Florida peninsula to produce high-resolution diagnostics supporting their daily operations. In addition, the NWS MLB and SMG have used ADAS to provide initial conditions for short-range forecasts from the ARPS numerical weather prediction (NWP) model. Both NM'S MLB and SMG have derived great benefit from the maturity of ADAS, and would like to use ADAS for providing initial conditions to WRF. In order to assist in this WRF transition effort, the Applied Meteorology Unit (AMU) was tasked to configure and implement an operational version of WRF that uses output from ADAS for the model initial conditions. Both agencies asked the AMU to develop a framework that allows the ADAS initial conditions to be incorporated into the WRF Environmental Modeling System (EMS) software. Developed by the NM'S Science Operations Officer (S00) Science and Training Resource Center (STRC), the EMS is a complete, full physics, NWP package that incorporates dynamical cores from both the National Center for Atmospheric Research's Advanced Research WRF (ARW) and the National Centers for Environmental Prediction's Non-Hydrostatic Mesoscale Model (NMM) into a single end-to-end forecasting system. The EMS performs nearly all pre- and postprocessing and can be run automatically to obtain external grid data for WRF boundary conditions, run the model, and convert the data into a format that can be readily viewed within the Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System. The EMS has also incorporated the WRF Standard Initialization (SI) graphical user interface (GUT), which allows the user to set up the domain, dynamical core, resolution, etc., with ease. In addition to the SI GUT, the EMS contains a number of configuration files with extensive documentation to help the user select the appropriate input parameters for model physics schemes, integration timesteps, etc. Therefore, because of its streamlined capability, it is quite advantageous to configure ADAS to provide initial condition data to the EMS software. One of the biggest potential benefits of configuring ADAS for ingest into the EMS is that the analyses could be used to initialize either the ARW or NMM. Currently, the ARPS/ADAS software has a conversion routine only for the ARW dynamical core. However, since the NIvIM runs about 2.5 times faster than the ARW, it is quite advantageous to be able to run an ADAS/NMM configuration operationally due to the increased efficiency.

Case, Jonathan↗

NASA NTRS2018

Overview of the NASA TROPICS CubeSat Constellation Mission

Recent technology advances in miniature microwave radiometers that can be hosted on very small satellites has made possible a new class of affordable constellation missions that provide very high revisit rates of tropical cyclones and other severe weather. The Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation structure and storm Intensity with a Constellation of Smallsats (TROPICS) mission was selected by NASA as part of the Earth Venture–Instrument (EVI-3) program and is now in development with planned launch readiness in late 2019. The overarching goal for TROPICS is to provide nearly all-weather observations of 3-D temperature and humidity, as well as cloud ice and precipitation horizontal structure, at high temporal resolution to conduct high-value science investigations of tropical cyclones (TCs). TROPICS will provide rapid-refresh microwave measurements (median refresh rate better than 60 minutes for the baseline mission) over the tropics that can be used to observe the thermodynamics of the troposphere and precipitation structure for storm systems at the mesoscale and synoptic scale over the entire storm lifecycle. TROPICS will comprise a constellation of at least six CubeSats in three low-Earth orbital planes. Each CubeSat will host a high performance radiometer to provide temperature profiles using seven channels near the 118.75 GHz oxygen absorption line, water vapor profiles using three channels near the 183 GHz water vapor absorption line, imagery in a single channel near 90 GHz for precipitation measurements (when combined with higher resolution water vapor channels), and a single channel at 205 GHz that is more sensitive to precipitation-sized ice particles and low-level moisture. This observing system offers an unprecedented combination of horizontal and temporal resolution in the microwave spectrum to measure environmental and inner-core conditions for TCs on a nearly global scale and is a major leap forward in the temporal resolution of several key parameters needed for assimilation into advanced data assimilation systems capable of utilizing rapid-update radiance or retrieval data. Here, we provide an overview of the mission and an update on current status, with a focus on unique characteristics of the Cubesat system, recent performance simulations on a range of observables to be provided by the constellation, and a summary of science applications.

Blackwell, W. J.↗

NASA NTRS2018

Overview of the NASA TROPICS CubeSat Constellation Mission

Recent technology advances in miniature microwave radiometers that can be hosted on very small satellites has made possible a new class of affordable constellation missions that provide very high revisit rates of tropical cyclones and other severe weather. The Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation structure and storm Intensity with a Constellation of Smallsats (TROPICS) mission was selected by NASA as part of the Earth Venture-Instrument (EVI-3)program and is now in development with planned launch readiness in late 2019. The overarching goal for TROPICS is to provide nearly all-weather observations of 3-D temperature and humidity, as well as cloud ice and precipitation horizontal structure, at high temporal resolution to conduct high-value science investigations of tropical cyclones (TCs). TROPICS will provide rapid-refresh microwave measurements (median refresh rate better than 60 minutes for the baseline mission) over the tropics that can be used to observe the thermodynamics of the troposphere and precipitation structure for storm systems at the mesoscale and synoptic scale over the entire storm life cycle. TROPICS will comprise a constellation of at least six CubeSats in three low-Earth orbital planes. Each CubeSat will host a high performance radiometer to provide temperature profiles using seven channels near the 118.75 GHz (gigahertz) oxygen absorption line, water vapor profiles using three channels near the 183 GHz water vapor absorption line, imagery in a single channel near 90 GHz for precipitation measurements (when combined with higher resolution water vapor channels), and a single channel at 205 GHz that is more sensitive to precipitation-sized ice particles and low-level moisture. This observing system offers an unprecedented combination of horizontal and temporal resolution in the microwave spectrum to measure environmental and inner-core conditions for TCs on a nearly global scale and is a major leap forward in the temporal resolution of several key parameters needed for assimilation into advanced data assimilation systems capable of utilizing rapid-update radiance or retrieval data. Here, we provide an overview of the mission and an update on current status,with a focus on unique characteristics of the Cubesat system, recent performance simulations on a range of observables to be provided by the constellation, and a summary of science applications.

Passive Microwave↗

NASA NTRS2006

Air Quality Science and Regulatory Efforts Require Geostationary Satellite Measurements

Air quality scientists and regulatory agencies would benefit from the high spatial and temporal resolution trace gas and aerosol data that could be provided by instruments on a geostationary platform. More detailed time-resolved data from a geostationary platform could be used in tracking regional transport and in evaluating mesoscale air quality model performance in terms of photochemical evolution throughout the day. The diurnal cycle of photochemical pollutants is currently missing from the data provided by the current generation of atmospheric chemistry satellites which provide only one measurement per day. Often peak surface ozone mixing ratios are reached much earlier in the day during major regional pollution episodes than during local episodes due to downward mixing of ozone that had been transported above the boundary layer overnight. The regional air quality models often do not simulate this downward mixing well enough and underestimate surface ozone in regional episodes. Having high time-resolution geostationary data will make it possible to determine the magnitude of this lower-and mid-tropospheric transport that contributes to peak eight-hour average ozone and 24-hour average PM2.5 concentrations. We will show ozone and PM(sub 2.5) episodes from the CMAQ model and suggest ways in which geostationary satellite data would improve air quality forecasting. Current regulatory modeling is typically being performed at 12 km horizontal resolution. State and regional air quality regulators in regions with complex topography and/or land-sea breezes are anxious to move to 4-km or finer resolution simulations. Geostationary data at these or finer resolutions will be useful in evaluating such models.

Pickering, Kenneth E.↗

NASA NTRS2018

The Surface Water and Ocean Topography Mission

The SWOT mission is a partnership between two communities, physical oceanography and hydrology, to share high vertical accuracy and high spatial resolution topography data produced by the science payload, whose principal instrument is a Ka-band radar Interferometer. The SWOT mission will provide large-scale data sets of ocean sea-surface height resolving scales of 15km (in wavelength) and larger, allowing the characterization of ocean mesoscale and submesoscale circulation. Present altimeter constellations can only resolve the ocean circulation at wavelengths larger than 200km. SWOT will address fundamental questions on the dynamics of ocean variability at wavelengths shorter than 200km, which encompasses mesoscale and submesoscale processes such as the formation, evolution, and dissipation of eddy variability (including narrow currents, fronts, and quasi-geostrophic turbulence) and their role in air-sea interaction.

Zohar, Guy↗

NASA NTRS2009

Multiscale Cloud System Modeling

The central theme of this paper is to describe how cloud system resolving models (CRMs) of grid spacing approximately 1 km have been applied to various important problems in atmospheric science across a wide range of spatial and temporal scales and how these applications relate to other modeling approaches. A long-standing problem concerns the representation of organized precipitating convective cloud systems in weather and climate models. Since CRMs resolve the mesoscale to large scales of motion (i.e., 10 km to global) they explicitly address the cloud system problem. By explicitly representing organized convection, CRMs bypass restrictive assumptions associated with convective parameterization such as the scale gap between cumulus and large-scale motion. Dynamical models provide insight into the physical mechanisms involved with scale interaction and convective organization. Multiscale CRMs simulate convective cloud systems in computational domains up to global and have been applied in place of contemporary convective parameterizations in global models. Multiscale CRMs pose a new challenge for model validation, which is met in an integrated approach involving CRMs, operational prediction systems, observational measurements, and dynamical models in a new international project: the Year of Tropical Convection, which has an emphasis on organized tropical convection and its global effects.

Tao, Wei-Kuo↗

NASA NTRS2018

An Overview of the TROPICS NASA Earth Venture Mission

The Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation structure and storm Intensity with a Constellation of Smallsats (TROPICS) mission was selected by NASA as part of the Earth Venture-Instrument (EVI-3) program. The overarching goal for TROPICS is to provide nearly all-weather observations of 3D temperature and humidity, as well as cloud ice and precipitation horizontal structure, at high temporal resolution to conduct high-value science investigations of tropical cyclones. TROPICS will provide rapid-refresh microwave measurements (median refresh rate better than 60 min for the baseline mission) which can be used to observe the thermodynamics of the troposphere and precipitation structure for storm systems at the mesoscale and synoptic scale over the entire storm life cycle. TROPICS comprises six Cube-Sats in three low-Earth orbital planes. Each CubeSat will host a high-performance radiometer to provide temperature profiles using seven channels near the 118.75 GHz oxygen absorption line, water vapour profiles using three channels near the 183 GHz water vapour absorption line, imagery in a single channel near 90 GHz for precipitation measurements (when combined with higher-resolution water vapour channels), and a single channel near 205 GHz which is more sensitive to precipitation-sized ice particles. This observing system offers an unprecedented combination of horizontal and temporal resolution to measure environmental and inner-core conditions for tropical cyclones on a nearly global scale and is a major leap forward in the temporal resolution of several key parameters needed for assimilation into advanced data assimilation systems capable of utilizing rapid-update radiance or retrieval data.Launch readiness is currently projected for late 2019.

TROPICS↗

NASA NTRS2001

TRMM: Status of Precipitation Estimates and Science Highlights

As a part of NASA's Earth System Enterprise, the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) seeks to understand the mechanisms through which changes in tropical rainfall influence global circulation. Over the past 3 years, TRMM has contributed significantly towards reducing uncertainty in satellite estimates of rainfall in the Tropics, where almost 67% of the Earth's rain falls. TRMM has provided knowledge related to the climatology, seasonality, and variation of tropical rainfall; the mesoscale structure of rain-producing systems; and the physics of precipitation. An overview of these results will be presented. Additionally, a summary of research highlights will be presented focusing on application of TRMM data to topics such as hurricane monitoring, climate analysis, forecasting, microphysics, environmental impacts, and El Nino/La Nina. Examples and plans for operational use of TRMM data in tropical cyclone monitoring and other applications will also be given.

Shepherd, J. Marshall↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

TPSAS-NF1676L-31539-DND

TROPICS (Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation Structure and Storm Intensity with a Constellation of Smallsats) Science Objectives - Relate precipitation structure evolution, including diurnal cycle, to the evolution of the upper-level warm core and associated intensity changes - Relate the occurrence of intense precipitation cores (convective bursts) to storm intensity evolution - Relate retrieved environmental moisture measurements to coincident measures of storm structure (including size) and intensity - Assimilate microwave observations in mesoscale and global numerical weather prediction models to assess impacts on storm track and intensity

William Blackwell↗

NASA NTRS2017

Atmospheric Research 2016 Technical Highlights

Atmospheric↗

NASA NTRS2015

Atmospheric Research 2014 Technical Highlights

Atmospheric research in the Earth Sciences Division (610) consists of research and technology development programs dedicated to advancing knowledge and understanding of the atmosphere and its interaction with the climate of Earth. The Division's goals are to improve understanding of the dynamics and physical properties of precipitation, clouds, and aerosols; atmospheric chemistry, including the role of natural and anthropogenic trace species on the ozone balance in the stratosphere and the troposphere; and radiative properties of Earth's atmosphere and the influence of solar variability on the Earth's climate. Major research activities are carried out in the Mesoscale Atmospheric Processes Laboratory, the Climate and Radiation Laboratory, the Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Laboratory, and the Wallops Field Support Office. The overall scope of the research covers an end-to-end process, starting with the identification of scientific problems, leading to observation requirements for remote-sensing platforms, technology and retrieval algorithm development; followed by flight projects and satellite missions; and eventually, resulting in data processing, analyses of measurements, and dissemination from flight projects and missions. Instrument scientists conceive, design, develop, and implement ultraviolet, infrared, optical, radar, laser, and lidar technology to remotely sense the atmosphere. Members of the various Laboratories conduct field measurements for satellite sensor calibration and data validation, and carry out numerous modeling activities. These modeling activities include climate model simulations, modeling the chemistry and transport of trace species on regional-to-global scales, cloud resolving models, and developing the next-generation Earth system models. Satellite missions, field campaigns, peer-reviewed publications, and successful proposals are essential at every stage of the research process to meeting our goals and maintaining leadership of the Earth Sciences Division in atmospheric science research. Figure 1.1 shows the 20-year record of peer-reviewed publications and proposals among the various Laboratories. This data shows that the scientific work being conducted in the Laboratories is competitive with the work being done elsewhere in universities and other government agencies. The office of Deputy Director for Atmospheric Research will strive to maintain this record by rigorously monitoring and promoting quality while emphasizing coordination and integration among atmospheric disciplines. Also, an appropriate balance will be maintained between the scientists' responsibility for large collaborative projects and missions and their need to carry out active science research as a principal investigator. This balance allows members of the Laboratories to improve their scientific credentials, and develop leadership potentials. Interdisciplinary research is carried out in collaboration with other laboratories and research groups within the Earth Sciences Division, across the Sciences and Exploration Directorate, and with partners in universities and other government agencies. Members of the Laboratories interact with the general public to support a wide range of interests in the atmospheric sciences. Among other activities, the Laboratories raise the public's awareness of atmospheric science by presenting public lectures and demonstrations, by making scientific data available to wide audiences, by teaching, and by mentoring students and teachers. The Atmosphere Laboratories make substantial efforts to attract and recruit new scientists to the various areas of atmospheric research. We strongly encourage the establishment of partnerships with Federal and state agencies that have operational responsibilities to promote the societal application of our science products. This report describes our role in NASA's mission, provides highlights of our research scope and activities, and summarizes our scientists' major accomplishments during calendar year 2014. The composition of the organization is shown in Figure 1.2 for each code. This report is published in a printed version with an electronic version on our atmospheres Web site, http://atmospheres.gsfc.nasa.gov/.

Technical↗

NASA NTRS1993

United States Weather Research Program (USWRP)

After more than a decade of development by a broad cross-section of the U.S. atmospheric research community involved in planning for the National STORM Program, the Subcommittee on Atmospheric Research (SAR) of the Committee on Earth and Environmental Science (CEES) led the development of a strategic plan to realize the objectives of STORM so as to improve our nation's capability to provide accurate short-term forecasts of weather. This strategic plan will guide the planning and implementation of what is now called the United States Weather Research Program (USWRP). The USWRP is charged with achieving operational atmospheric prediction based on mesoscale observations and model results and establishing the scientific and technological basis for global atmospheric mesoscale prediction by the year 2000. The key scientific questions that are addressed under USWRP are discussed.

Bhumralkar, Chandrakant↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

An LES Survey of Cold-Air Outbreaks Spanning ACTIVATE and COMBLE

Two recent field campaigns offer unique new opportunities to survey coupled aerosol and cloud processes operating within cold-air outbreaks (CAOs). NASA's 2019-2023 Aerosol Cloud meTeorology Interactions oVer the western Atlantic Experiment (ACTIVATE) project provided airborne in situ and remote sensing observations in multiple CAOs off the central US Eastern Seaboard. Contemporaneously, DOE's 2019-2020 Cold-air Outbreaks in the Marine Boundary Layer Experiment (COMBLE) provided continuous ground-based in situ and remote sensing measurements during hundreds of hours of CAO conditions at two sites flanking the Norwegian Sea. Here we highlight lessons learned from contrasting sets of aerosol-aware Lagrangian large-eddy simulation case studies derived from each campaign, as well as outstanding uncertainties. Cases simulated include all of the most extensively sampled CAO flights during ACTIVATE, and a wide range of CAO strengths and mesoscale structures during COMBLE. Each case study is also suitable for simulation with large-scale models in single-column model mode or with a limited-domain approach using periodic boundary conditions. We seek to address the central question: what microphysical process pathways control the Lagrangian evolution of surface and top-of-atmosphere radiative fluxes under ACTIVATE and COMBLE conditions? Many science team members, co-investigators, and collaborators will be gratefully acknowledged in association with their contributions to making this work possible.

cold-air outbreaks↗

NASA NTRS2000

Channel Selection for the Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI)

The GOES-R (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-R) Imager will be the fourth generation imaging radiometer flown in 40 years that observes the western hemisphere from geosynchronous orbit. The Imager is an international resource for information about unpredictable short-term mesoscale phenomena such as severe storms, precipitation, clouds and fog, fires and volcanoes. As such, it must provide: (1) continuity of service, (2) valuable new capabilities, and (3) synergy with the companion fleet of imaging radiometers. This combination of requirements lead to a suite of channels evolved from the generations of LEO (low Earth orbit) and GEO- (geosynchronous Earth orbit) and -sounders. To maximize the science and applications payoff from its unique viewpoint, the next generation GOES Imager should concentrate upon regional measurements of the chaotic atmospheric phenomena involving water and the diurnal cycle -- energy potential, moisture transport, phase changes, precipitation, and cloud climatology.

Chesters, Dennis↗

NASA NTRS2020

Geostar – a ‘Shovel Ready’ Geostationary Microwave Sounder

A geostationary microwave sounder, capable of providing temperature, water vapor, clouds, precipitation, and wind in the presence of clouds, convection and precipitation, will add tremendously to our ability to observe dynamic atmospheric phenomena, such as hurricanes and severe storms, monsoonal moisture flow, atmospheric rivers, etc. Such a sensor is now feasible, enabled by technology that has been developed under NASA’s Instrument Incubator Program at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The Geostationary Synthetic Thinned Aperture Radiometer (GeoSTAR) is essentially an “AMSU in GEO”, i.e. it has similar capabilities as AMSU would have if it were operating on a geostationary satellite, but with similar spatial resolution. GEO orbits are almost 50 times higher than the LEO orbits that current AMSUs operate from, and the corresponding scaling of aperture size required to maintain spatial resolution has stymied the development of such a sensor for many decades. The aperture synthesis approach implemented with GeoSTAR finally overcomes that obstacle, and the large number of microwave receivers and associated electronics required is made possible with new technology that has now been developed. A low-cost mission operating as a hosted payload on a commercial communications satellite has been designed and is “shovel-ready”. The objectives of such a mission could be to advance our understanding and modeling of storm processes that control rapid or explosive intensification of hurricanes, mesoscale convective systems, and extratropical cyclones, or it could be to support operational weather forecasting and nowcasting. Retrieval of temperature and water vapor profiles is possible even in the presence of moderate precipitation, and with the ability to derive horizontal wind vectors by tracking water vapor features, a rich set of parameters measuring the thermodynamics, dynamics and convection and sampled every 15 minutes, will enable significant progress in storm science and forecasting.

Lambrigtsen, Bjorn H↗

NASA NTRS2014

The GOES-R Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM) and the Global Observing System for Total Lightning

for the existing GOES system currently operating over the Western Hemisphere. New and improved instrument technology will support expanded detection of environmental phenomena, resulting in more timely and accurate forecasts and warnings. Advancements over current GOES include a new capability for total lightning detection (cloud and cloud-to-ground flashes) from the Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM), and improved temporal, spatial, and spectral resolution for the next generation Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI). The GLM will map total lightning continuously day and night with near-uniform spatial resolution of 8 km with a product latency of less than 20 sec over the Americas and adjacent oceanic regions. This will aid in forecasting severe storms and tornado activity, and convective weather impacts on aviation safety and efficiency among a number of potential applications. The GLM will help address the National Weather Service requirement for total lightning observations globally to support warning decision-making and forecast services. Science and application development along with pre-operational product demonstrations and evaluations at NWS national centers, forecast offices, and NOAA testbeds will prepare the forecasters to use GLM as soon as possible after the planned launch and check-out of GOES-R in 2016. New applications will use GLM alone, in combination with the ABI, or integrated (fused) with other available tools (weather radar and ground strike networks, nowcasting systems, mesoscale analysis, and numerical weather prediction models) in the hands of the forecaster responsible for issuing more timely and accurate forecasts and warnings.

Goodman, Steven J.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Space Shuttle to deploy Magellan planetary science mission

The objectives of Space Shuttle Mission STS-30 are described along with major flight activities, prelaunch and launch operations, trajectory sequence of events, and landing and post-landing operations. The primary objective of STS-30 is to successfully deploy the Magellan spacecraft into low earth orbit. Following deployment, Magellan will be propelled to its Venus trajectory by an Inertial Upper Stage booster. The objectives of the Magellan mission are to obtain radar images of more than 70 percent of Venus' surface, a near-global topographic map, and near-global gravity field data. Secondary STS-30 payloads include the Fluids Experiment Apparatus (FEA) and the Mesoscale Lightning Experiment (MLE).

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