Portable aerosol instruments for deployment on Unmanned Aerial Systems

Description

More routine measurements of the aerosol direct and indirect effects on climate are required to reduce the uncertainties in model predictions of climate change, precipitation patterns, and weather. Scientists and engineers at Brechtel have been working on a variety of instruments to enable ARM aerosol measurements. One possibility for providing measurements over broader spatial and temporal scales is to deploy miniaturized instruments on-board unmanned aerial systems (UASs). Brechtel has developed a fast-response particle counter, light absorption photometer, nanoparticle optical and electrical mobility sizers, filter sampler and inlets small enough to be deployed on medium-sized UASs, tethered balloons, and other platforms requiring small size, low weight, and low power usage. The typical dimensions of the modules are between 5 and 15 cm with weights between 0.2 and 4 kg. Many of the aforementioned modules completed 80 flight hours successfully over the Arctic in 2011 and 2015 on-board a Manta UAV. The application of these devices on the DOE Arctic Shark UAS for measurements over the Arctic will be discussed.