Aircraft Platforms
Lockheed WP-3D Orion: NOAA Aircraft Operations Center / NOAA Aeronomy Laboratory
| Endurance: | 10 hrs |
| Ceiling: | 7.6 km |
| Payload: | >2700 kg |
| Research Speed: | 100-150 m/s |
Aircraft Instrument Package for the NOAA WP-3D Orion
| Parameter | Time Resolution | Method | Det. Limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ozone (O3) | 10 s | UV Absorption | 1 ppb |
| Fast O3 (FO3) | 1 s | NO/O3 Chemiluminescence | 0.2 ppb |
| Fast CO (FCO) | 1 s | VUV Resonance Fluorescence | 1 ppb |
| Carbon Dioxide (CO2) | < 1 s | NDIR | 0.2 ppm |
| Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) | 2 s | UV Pulsed Fluorescence | 1 ppb |
| Nitric Oxide (NO) | 1 s | NO/O3 Chemiluminescence | 30 ppt |
| Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) | 3 s | Photolysis, NO/O3 Chem. | 100 ppt |
| Total Nitrogen Oxides (NOy) | 1 s | Au Converter, NO/O3 Chem. | 50 ppt |
| PAN | 1 s / every 6 min | Dir. Injection, GC/ECD | < 5 ppt |
| PPN | 1 s / every 6 min | Dir. Injection, GC/ECD | < 5 ppt |
| MPAN | 1 s /every 6 min | Dir. Injection, GC/ECD | < 5 ppt |
| Nitric Acid (HNO3) | 1 s | C I Mass Spectrometry | 10 ppt |
| NH3 | 5 s | C I Mass Spectrometry | 50 ppt |
| In-situ VOCs | 1 min./every 15 min | Cryo Collection, GC/FID | < 10 ppt |
| Canister VOCs | < 1 min. | Canister Sampling, GC/MS | < 10 ppt |
| CH2O | Liquid Chromatography | ||
| Peroxides (incl. H2O2) | 1 min | Dual Enzymatic / Fluorimeter | 30 ppt |
| Aerosol size distribution | 1 s | NMASS | 5 - 90 nm |
| Aerosol size distribution | 1 s | ERAST | 70 - 1000 nm |
| Total Radiation | 1 s | Eppley Pyranometers - Zenith & Nadir | 0.28 - 2.8 µ |
| UV Radiation | ~10 s | Spectral Radiometer - Zenith & Nadir | 295 - 480 nm |
| Visible Radiation | Visible Absorption Spectrometer | 420 - 700 nm | |
| Water Vapor (H2O) | 1 s | Lyman Alpha Absorption | |
| Air Temperature | 1 s | Platinum Thermistor | |
| Dewpoint/Frostpoint | < 3 s | Chilled Mirror | |
| Wind Speed | 1 s | Derived from INE | |
| Wind Direction | 1 s | Derived from INE | |
| Altitude | 1 s | Barometric | |
| Position | 1 s | GPS, INE | |
| Air Speed | 1 s | Barometric | |
| Biometer | 3-wavelength IR Absorption | ||
| Atmospheric Reflectivity | C & X Band Radars | ||
Grumman G-1: DOE Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
| Endurance: | 6 hrs |
| Ceiling: | 3.5 km |
| Payload: | 1300 kg |
| Research Speed: | 100 m/s |
Aircraft Instrument Package for the DOE Grumman G-1
| Parameter | Time Resolution | Method | Det. Limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ozone (O3) | 10 s | UV Absorption | 25 ppb |
| Carbon Monoxide (CO) | 20 s | NDIR | 20 - 25 ppb |
| Fast CO (FCO) | 5 s | VUV Resonance Fluorescence | 5 ppb |
| Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) | 2 s | UV Pulsed Fluorescence | 200 - 300 ppt |
| Nitric Oxide (NO) | < 10 s | NO/O3 Chemiluminescence | 20 ppt |
| Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) | < 10 s | Photolysis NO/O3 Chem. | 50 ppt |
| Nitrogen Dioxide (optional) | < 10 s | Luminol Chemiluminescence | 0.015 ppbv |
| Total Nitrogen Oxides (NOy) | < 10 s | Mo Converter. NO/O3 Chem. | 300 - 400 ppt |
| PAN | 1 sample/7 min | Cyrogenic GC | 15 ppt |
| CH2O (optional) | Continuous (1min delay) | Fluorescence | 100 ppt |
| PAN | 4 s | Tandem Mass Spectrometry | 400 ppt |
| HNO2 | 4 s | Tandem Mass Spectrometry | 400 ppt |
| HNO3 | 4 s | Tandem Mass Spectrometry | 400 ppt |
| NH3 (optional) | 4 s | Tandem Mass Spectrometry | ~2 ppb |
| Formic/Acid acids (optional) | 4 s | Tandem Mass Spectrometry | 100 ppt |
| Canister VOCs | Canister Sampling, GC/FID | 0.1 ppbv | |
| bscat | 1 s | Nephelometer | 0-103/Mm |
| Aerosol size distribution | 1 s | PCASP | (0.17 - 3 µm) |
| Aerosol size distribution | 1 s | FSSP | (2 - 47 µm) |
| Particle Number | 1 s | CNC (two) | (> 7 nm, > 3 nm) |
| UV Radiation | 1 s | Eppley Pyranometer | (295 - 385 nm) |
| Short-wave Irradiance | 1 s | Eppley PSP | (285 - 2800 nm) |
| Long-wave Irradiance | 1 s | Eppley PIR | (4 - 50 microns) |
| Water Vapor (H2O) | 1 s | Lyman Alpha Absorption | ±0.1 g m-3(est.) |
| Air Temperature | 1 s | Platinum Resistance | ±0.5 ºC |
| Dewpoint/Frostpoint | 1 s | Chilled Mirror | D.P. ±0.2 ºC, F.P. ±0.4 ºC |
| Wind Components (u-,v-,w-) | 1 s | Gust Probe | < 0.5 m s-1 |
| Altitude | 1 s | Barometric | < 1 mb |
| Position | 1 s | GPS | < 3 m |
| Air Speed | 0.1 s | Barometric | < 20 cm s-1 |
Bell 205 Helicopter: TVA Environmental Research Center
| Endurance: | 2 hrs |
| Ceiling: | 2.5 km |
| Payload: | 500 kg |
| Research Speed: | 40-50 m/s |
Aircraft Instrument Package for the TVA Bell 205 Helicopter
| Parameter | Time Resolution | Method | Det. Limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ozone (O3) | 1 s | NO Chemiluminescence | 2 ppb |
| Carbon Monoxide (CO) | NDIR or HgO reduction | ||
| Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) | 5 s | UV Pulsed Fluorescence | 0.5 ppb |
| Nitric Oxide (NO) | 1 s | NO/O3 Chemiluminescence | 1 ppb |
| Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) | 5 s | Photolysis, NO/O3 Chem. | 1 ppb |
| Total Nitrogen Oxides (NOy) | 1 s | Au Converter, NO/O3 Chem. | 1 ppb |
| NOy* | 1 s | NOy detection + Nylasorb Filter | 1 ppb |
| Canister VOCs | 1 min | Canister Sampling, GC/FID | |
| bscat | 5 s | Nephelometer | < 10-6 m-1 |
| Aerosol Size Distribution | 1 s | PCASP | (0.17 - 3µm) |
| Particle Composition | variable | Filter Pack, IC analysis | |
| Particle Composition by Size | variable | Anderson Cascade Impactor | |
| Air Temperature | 5 s | Platinum Thermistor | |
| Dewpoint | 5 s | Capacitance Sensor | |
| Altitude | 5 s | Barometric | |
| Position | 5 s | GPS | |
| Air Speed | 5 s | Pitot- Static Pressure | 2 m/s |
| Heading | 5 s | Flux Gate Compass | 0.5 deg. |
deHavilland Caribou: Private vendor / NOAA Environmental Technology Laboratory
| Endurance: | 4.5 hrs |
| Ceiling: | 3.5 km |
| Payload: | <2700 kg |
| Research Speed: | 65-100 m/s |
Aircraft Instrument Package for the deHavilland Caribou
| Parameter | Time Resolution | Vertical Resolution | Method | Det. Limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ozone | 3 - 8 s | 90 m | DIAL Lidar | 4 - 10 ppb |
| Aerosol Backscatter | 3 - 8 s | 15 m | DIAL Lidar | 5 x 10-6 m-1sr-1 |
| Surface Temperature | 1 s | NA | IR Radiometer | 0.2 ºC |