HR: 14:45h
AN: A53A-04    [Abstracts]
TI: LASE Measurements of Water Vapor, Aerosol, and Cloud Distributions in Regions of African Easterly Waves and Saharan Dust Layers
AU: * Ismail, S
EM: s.ismail@larc.nasa.gov
AF: Science Directorate NASA Langley Research Center, MS 401 A, Hampton, VA 23681, United States
AU: Browell, E V
EM: e.v.browell@larc.nasa.gov
AF: Science Directorate NASA Langley Research Center, MS 401 A, Hampton, VA 23681, United States
AU: Ferrare, R A
EM: r.ferrare@larc.nasa.gov
AF: Science Directorate NASA Langley Research Center, MS 401 A, Hampton, VA 23681, United States
AU: Notari, A
EM: a.notai@larc.nasa.gov
AF: SSAI, 1 Enterprizse Pkwy, Hampton, VA 23666, United States
AU: Kooi, S A
EM: s.a.kooi@larc.nasa.gov
AF: SSAI, 1 Enterprizse Pkwy, Hampton, VA 23666, United States
AU: Butler, C F
EM: c.f.butler@larc.nasa.gov
AF: SSAI, 1 Enterprizse Pkwy, Hampton, VA 23666, United States
AU: Anderson, B E
EM: Bruce.E.Anderson@nasa.gov
AF: Science Directorate NASA Langley Research Center, MS 401 A, Hampton, VA 23681, United States
AU: Heymsfield, G M
EM: Gerald.Heymsfield@nasa.gov
AF: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, 800 Greenbelt Rd, Greenbelt, MD 20771, United States
AU: Schmidlin, F J
EM: Francis.J.Schmidlin@nasa.gov
AF: NASA Wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Wallops Island, VA 23337, United States
AB: LASE (Lidar Atmospheric Sensing Experiment) measured high resolution profiles of water vapor and aerosols, and cloud distributions in 14 flights over the eastern Atlantic region during the NAMMA (NASA African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analyses) field experiment which was conducted from August 15 to September 12, 2006. Measurements were made in conjunction with African Easterly Waves (AEW), Tropical Disturbances (TDs), and Saharan Aerosol Layers (SALs); and in clear air and convective regions. Interactions of Saharan dust layers with tropical air during early stages of the development of TDs were observed. LASE measurements were used to profile the dust layers and guide in situ aircraft sampling. The dust layers over the ocean and the continent were found to range in altitude from near surface to 6 km. Aerosol scattering ratios at 817 nm ranged from 0 to >20, and their optical thickness ranged from 0 to >1. Highly attenuating (cloud) regions with high (~100%) RH were occasionally observed within the dust layers. Dust layers were situated generally north of the TDs, however, dust layers were also observed in and around the TDs. A wide range of water vapor concentrations were observed in and around the TDs, and in general, the dust layers were anti-correlated with the water vapor distributions. LASE water vapor, aerosol, cloud measurements during NAMMA provided an opportunity to compare with in situ aircraft, dropsonde, and radiosonde measurements; and satellite observations. Examples of LASE measurements along with their relationship with the AEWs, at various stages of their development, will be presented in this paper.
DE: 0305 Aerosols and particles (0345, 4801, 4906)
DE: 0319 Cloud optics
DE: 0365 Troposphere: composition and chemistry
DE: 0368 Troposphere: constituent transport and chemistry
DE: 1640 Remote sensing (1855)
SC: Atmospheric Sciences [A]
MN: 2007 Joint Assembly