Breakout Summary Report
ARM/ASR User and PI Meeting
10 - 13 June 2019
TRacking Aerosol Convection Interactions ExpeRiment (TRACER)
12 June 2019
10:30 AM - 12:30 PM
70
Michael Jensen, Nitin Bharadwaj
12 June 2019
10:30 AM - 12:30 PM
70
Michael Jensen, Nitin Bharadwaj
Breakout Description
To increase our understanding of convective processes and convection-aerosol interactions, the recently selected ARM campaign, TRacking Aerosol Convection Interactions ExpeRiment (TRACER), will take place in the greater Houston metropolitan area from April 2021 through April 2022, with an intensive operational period from June through September of 2021. TRACER will involve the deployment of the First ARM Mobile Facility, the 2nd-generation C-band Scanning ARM Precipitation Radar (CSAPR2) and an ancillary site with additional aerosol and atmospheric state measurements. The session provided an introduction of the TRACER science goals and deployment strategies to the larger ARM/ASR community. Initial planning activities were discussed including; siting and instrumentation decisions, adaptive radar scanning considerations, and evolving inter-agency and international synergies.Main Discussion
Presentations served to introduce the ARM/ASR community to the TRACER campaign (Jensen), provide updates on emerging complementary proposals to NSF (Kollias), summarize some of the decisions that must be made to implement adaptive radar scanning (Bharadwaj), and discuss additional measurement needs to address the science goals of the campaign (Jensen).Key Findings
The TRACER campaign includes the deployment of the AMF1, the CSAPR2 and an ancillary site in the Houston Metropolitan region beginning April 2021 through April 2022 with an intensive operational period from June to September 2021. The scientific focus of the campaign is on improved understanding of the convective cloud life cycle with an emphasis on aerosol-convection interactions. Towards this end, adaptive scanning of the CSAPR2 for tracking of isolated convective cells is planned. Inter-agency and international collaborations are being sought in order to expand the scientific reach of the campaign.Issues
- Siting plans will require important consideration including frequency interference for radars and other remote sensors, NEPA requirements, and aerosol sources (among other logistical requirements). A siting visit is tentatively planned for January 2020 and will include AMF1 operations, PI, radar engineers, aerosol mentors, and local contacts.
- Opportunities are being pursued for guest instrumentation, inter-agency partners, and international collaborators to address sampling of spatial (including profiling)/temporal variability in atmospheric thermodynamics and CCN concentrations, while also considering other interesting science applications in the Houston region.
- A question was also raised about opportunities for aerosol chemistry and other aerosol-focused science objectives. Although not specifically called out in the TRACER proposal/science plan, these related topics are encouraged through ASR, ARM, and partner agency proposals.
Needs
Several specific needs and opportunities were noted. Specifically, participants for the forecasting team during the four months of the IOP are needed. It is expected this team will consist of a mixture of scientists, staff, and students and will mostly conduct operations virtually. Specific science measurement needs were identified including spatial and temporal variability of thermodynamic and CCN characteristics including vertical profiling. This likely will require some inter-agency cooperation for an aircraft component. In addition, input from the science team is needed to inform the development of the decision tree for adaptive scanning for convective cell-tracking.Decisions
Several collaborative opportunities were identified. Jensen will be giving a presentation to multi-agency program managers to solicit engagement in the TRACER campaign in mid-August. A focused ARM solicitation for the deployment of guest instruments during the TRACER campaign is anticipated.Future Plans
Important TRACER dates:
- August 2019 – Interagency TRACER presentation
- January 2020 – Anticipated site selection visits to Houston region
- April 2020 – TRACER Science and Operations meeting
- June 2020 – TRACER forecasting exercise
- April 2021 – TRACER campaign start
- June 2021 – TRACER IOP start
- September 2021- TRACER IOP end
- April 2022 – TRACER campaign end