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Robotic Aerostat Research Lab (RARL) University of Massachusetts, Amherst | ||||
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Flight Completed Updated 8/14/2004 at 14:00 Z (10:00 am EST) Balloon launched from Centre Island (Long Island NY) on 8/9/2004 at 7:30 pm local time into the NY plume (see flight map). Centre Island, on the north shore of Long Island, is our closest launch site to NYC (and its three major airports) allowed by the FAA. The balloon was intercepted twice by the NOAA P3 over LI sounde during the morning of 8/10 and helped guide a second P3 flight over Maine on the morning of 8/11. The balloon was approaching the Azores when it suddenly stopped communicating. The most likely scenario is a sudden failure of the high-pressure balloon followed by descent into the ocean. The total flight duration was 112 hours (almost 5 days). Participation in ICARTT 2004 During the summer of 2004, we are participating in the International Consortium for Atmospheric Research on Transport and Transformations (ICARTT) campaign. This unprecedented effort involving 13 research aircraft, a ship, and numerous ground stations in the United States, Canada, and Europe, aims to study air pollution in New England and its long-range transport across the Atlantic. RARL will be contributing five Small Lagrangian Observation Balloons (SLOBs) for tracking pollution events. Specifications of the balloons are given below. More information is available at www.geo.umass.edu/rarl. Balloon #001: Launched 7/15/04 at 21:00 Z 18-hour flight at 500 m tracking the NY plume from Plymouth MA to St. John, Canada Balloon #002: Launched 7/20/04 at 20:40 Z 30-hour flight at 500 m tracking the NY plume from Woods Hole MA to Cape Breton Island, Canada Balloon #003: Launched 8/02/04 at 22:05 Z 26-hour flight at 300-1000 m tracking the Boston plume from Plymouth MA to Prince Edward's Island Balloon #004: Launched 8/09/04 at 23:30 Z 112-hour flight at 500-1500 m tracking the NY plume from Centre Island NY to the Azores Balloon #005: Launched 8/10/04 at 22:30 Z 12-hour flight w/ O3 UNH instrument from Portsmouth NH to Maine (crashed into mountains). Balloon Specifications: Approximate diameter: 1.6 m Payload mass: 380 g Altitude Range: 0-5 km Flight Duration: 30 hours (to date), 5-10 days (expected) Communication: Iridium satellite modem Instrumentation: Temperature (+/-0.2 C), Pressure: (+/-1 mb), GPS location (+/-5 m x,y; +/-50 m z) Contact Information: Paul Voss / Emily Riddle Department of Geosciences University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA 01003 Tel: 413-320-1336 (Mobile); 413-545-0229 (Lab) Email: pvoss@geo.umass.edu This research is supported by the National Science Foundation (Physical Meteorology and Atmospheric Chemistry Programs). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. | ||||