Mission 8

ER-2 Sortie 00-154

Thursday, August 31, 2000

Chris Moeller: Flight Scientist

Objectives and Summary:  Over fly ground based instrumentation (SPM, MPL) at Skukuza, map cirrus cloud to the south of Skukuza for MODIS cloud validation and optical properties with Terra overhead (0823 UTC overpass), map fires/scars and aerosol properties along 150 minute segment (~1800 km) transecting gyre in Gauteng sector up into Mozambique sector to Lake Tanganyika.  Coordinate aerosol mapping with CV-580 and JRA in region between Limpopo and Rio Save rivers.

Skies clear on launch at Pietersburg; cirrus approaching from SSW ahead of synoptic Low system over Cape Town region.  ER-2 climbed out to north and vectored east to align parallel to Terra orbital track (193° heading) for run over Skukuza and on southward towards coast.  Before reaching Skukuza, MAS failure occurred and after repeated attempt to revive MAS, aborted the mission (0751 UTC).  Other instruments collected about 30 minutes of data.  Pilot reported clear over Skukuza and cirrus to south.  CPL data review shows some cirrus was over flown before the mission was aborted..

Highlights: Cirrus scenes with CPL, SHIS.

ER-2 Mission:   Pilot:             Ken Broda

                             Takeoff         0705 UTC

                             Landing        0855 UTC

                             Duration       1:50

The AERONET sites were over flown during this mission:

·        Skukuza (20°01.2’S, 31°29.8’E)

Instrument Status:

·        AirMISR – not on plane; being repaired

·        CPL – worked well, but navigation data not recorded

·        LAS – No data

·        MAS – failed at 5 minutes after turn on

·        MOPITT-A –worked well

·        S-HIS – worked well; nadir mode

·        SSFR – worked well

Meteorology:

An active cold front is causing further rainy weather at the Cape. A coastal low is on the Natal coast.  A band of upper cirrus has spread northwards into Gauteng region ahead of the frontal systems to the south and lies over the central and eastern areas of South Africa.  Partly cloudy to cloudy with upper level cirrus over the southern, central and eastern parts of South Africa. Fine elsewhere.

Instruments:

AirMISR – Airborne Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer

CPL – Cloud Physics Lidar

LAS - Leonardo Airborne Simulator

MAS – MODIS Airborne Simulator

MOPITT-A – MOPITT Airborne Simulator

S-HIS – Scanning High-resolution Interferometer Sounder

SSFR – Solar Spectral Flux Radiometer

ER-2 Ground Track: