Breakout Summary Report
ARM/ASR User and PI Meeting
13 - 17 March 2017
Virtual Field Campaigns
16 March 2017
10:45 AM - 12:45 PM
30
Jennifer Comstock
16 March 2017
10:45 AM - 12:45 PM
30
Jennifer Comstock
Breakout Description
The long-term ARM data record spans over 24 years, including 4 fixed observatories (current and past), and numerous mobile and aerial field campaign locations. Identifying time periods of interest coinciding with high-quality measurements can be time consuming and requires analysis of multiple instrument datastreams over many years. Recently, the ACME-ARM-ASR Workshop identified the compilation of “virtual field campaign” data sets as one way to focus research activities on important science gaps by assembling existing data sets around a location, science theme, or time frame. These data sets would include quality-controlled, calibrated observations packaged for use in algorithm development, analysis, and modeling or observational process studies. Including new demands on maintaining the suite of ARM radar measurements for improved insights into cloud and precipitation life cycle, this breakout will address several challenges for identifying and generating these ‘golden’ data sets. An outcome for this session is to have a path forward for creating and distributing these data. Initial discussions will center on science themes at the Oliktok and Eastern North Atlantic sites, but we welcome participants to come prepared to discuss other potential sites, time periods, and measurements of interest. This exercise will set the foundation for building a long-term, highly characterized data set at ARM observatories.Main Discussion
A short introduction was presented to provide context around the meaning of virtual field campaigns and the goals of the session. A virtual field campaign is described as an identified time period that is centered around a particular set of science themes (i.e., deep or shallow convection, mixed-phase clouds, etc.). For these ‘golden’ time periods, a data set would be created with quality-controlled, calibrated measurements from one or more instruments that would be science-ready for users. These data sets would be highlighted by ARM and packaged for easy access and use.The main discussion was around the topic of identifying potential 'golden data sets' of interest to scientists. Five presentations described science themes and data periods of interest at the Oliktok and ENA sites, primarily centered on radar data, but also discussed additional instruments of interest. Another presentation described the need for calibrated radar data for long-term radar simulator statistics. Several use cases were identified: 1) the long-term radar simulator data set at multiple sites, 2) short-term, multi-sensor cases at Oliktok (~10 days), and 3) short-term, multi-sensor cases at ENA (~3 weeks) related to cold-air outbreaks.
There were also 3 presentations from ARM staff that described some of the challenges with creating virtual field campaign data sets. A final presentation described an approach for packaging and distributing data sets at the ARM Data Archive.